Let Our Fires Melt This Frozen Heart
by pingo1387
Summary: AU. When Luffy vanishes without a trace one snowy evening, Ace and Sabo must leave home to find him—no matter the cost. Based on Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen."
1. Prelude in C Minor

_A long time ago, in a secret place, there lived a colony of wicked wights. These creatures hated mankind and were responsible for every misfortune and evil in the world. One day, the most wicked wight created something worthy of its disposition: A mirror of ice which reflected everything it saw in a twisted, perverted way.  
The wights delighted in their new toy, and carried it high above the Earth, cackling at how disgusting all the beautiful things appeared in the mirror. The higher they held it, the more they could reflect, and so they climbed high into the sky. But there, where they barely touched the clouds, the mirror slipped from their grasp. It fell to Earth and was dashed into countless splinters, quickly scattered by the wind.  
To this day, the shards of the mirror remain in the human realm. If a person's eye is pierced by one, they will never see the world the same again. But worse yet is if a person's heart is pierced, for their heart will become as cold as the ice on the mountaintop. _

"—That's not _true_ , is it?"

Ace lowered the tome he held to see Luffy staring at him with wide eyes.

"It's just a story, right?" Luffy added, clutching the comforter to him. Though he was now thirteen years of age and nearly ready to hit another growth spurt (or so he insisted), he had not yet grown out of being read to at bedtime.

Ace grinned, setting the book in his lap and ruffling Luffy's dark hair, a mop which a comb could never tame. "Of course it is," he said. Luffy smiled and reached up to mess with Ace's hair in turn (so similar to his own in color and tidiness). "I'll read you a different story next time, something less scary."

Luffy tapped Ace's head with a fist, frowning. "It wasn't _scary!_ It just wasn't funny or happy!"

"Well, how about that one with the magic mirror and poison apple tomorrow?" Ace suggested. Luffy brightened and nodded.

"Okay, then. For now, get to sleep."

"I'm not—" Luffy yawned. "Not tired."

Ace set the book on the floor next to Luffy's bed, below the small table which held Luffy's old straw hat. "G'night, shrimp, see you tomorrow."

"I'm _not_ a shrimp . . ."

Ace stood and turned off the light as he left the room, leaving the door open a crack. He descended the tiny, creaking staircase and into the little kitchen, where someone already sat at the table, its leaves hanging on either side.

"Hey, Sabo," he said, sitting across from him. "He's asleep."

Sabo looked up from his book—one of many resting on the table. His fair complexion matched neither Luffy's wheatish skin nor Ace's rosy, freckled tone, though his hair was wavy like Ace's, and his eyes round like Luffy's.

"That's good, then," he said, glancing to the stairs with a smile.

"He didn't seem to like the story I read him, though," Ace added, shifting where he sat.

Sabo gave him a stern look.

"Hey, how was I to know?" Ace said with a careless shrug. "I thought it was interesting. That one with the mirror shards . . . you know it?"

"Oh, that one," Sabo said with a nod. "I don't remember what happens, but I think I see why he wouldn't like it."

"Yeah." Ace glanced to the books with an exaggerated sigh. "What're we studying tonight?"

"Properties of matter."

"Now, consider this . . ." Ace leaned forward in a serious manner. "What if we just . . . skipped studying?"

Sabo rested his hand on his chin. "What if we didn't?"

"Then our night would be boring as hell."

"Ace, come on," Sabo said in exasperation. "I don't like it, either, but as long as we can't afford school, we need to educate ourselves."

"Yeah, but it's boring."

"You're pretty good at it."

"Doesn't make it less boring."

"True." Sabo pushed a book towards him. "Get to reading. We're doing this for Luffy, remember?"

"I know, I know," Ace said, reluctantly taking the book. "Helps us with exams once we get into school, which helps us find real jobs, which puts more food on the table for Luffy."

"There you go," Sabo said, grinning. "Although . . . I wonder if we could take jobs as wrestling instructors?"

Ace snickered. "Hey, we may be tough, but I don't think we're qualified to teach anyone unless we can take down the old man one day."

Sabo ducked his head, laughing. "Like _anyone_ could take him down!"

Ace cleared his throat. "'I put you boys through this training so you can join the navy!'" he said gruffly in an excellent imitation of their grandfather. "'You need to be _big_ and _strong_ young men! Drink your teeth, brush your sleep, and get eight hours of milk—'"

" _Stop!"_ Sabo exclaimed through his laughter, holding up a shaking hand.

"Pretty good, huh?" Ace said proudly, dropping the imitation.

" _Too_ good," Sabo said, straightening back up as he recovered. "Really, though—"

"Yeah, yeah," Ace said, waving a hand. He opened up his book to the chapter and began skimming the text with Sabo.

They were perhaps halfway through their studies when the faint creaking of the stairs made them look up. Luffy poked his head around the corner and instantly pulled back when he saw them looking.

"Luffy, we know you're there," Ace said. "What's up?"

Luffy poked his head back around with a sheepish look. "I just wanted to sit in front of the fireplace," he mumbled. "I can't sleep."

"Oh," Ace said in surprise. "Alright, then. We'll light it up as soon as we're done studying—"

"Which happens to be right now," Sabo interrupted, shoving his book aside. Ace threw him an indignant look, which went ignored as Sabo continued, "Come on out to the living room, I'll get the matches."

"You're such a hypocrite," Ace hissed as Luffy shuffled into the room, following Sabo. He sighed and shoved his book away, standing to follow his brothers.

Sabo crumpled up some papers, throwing them into the fireplace, and struck a match, setting the paper alight and letting the flames spread to the wood. When he straightened up and turned around, he found Ace and Luffy already settled down, Luffy's head resting on Ace's lap.

"What?" Ace said when Sabo scowled. "We got here first."

Sabo stalked to the couch, sat down, and pulled Luffy's legs into his lap, dancing his fingers over the soles of his feet. Luffy shrieked and sat up, flinging his legs around and smacking Sabo's face.

"Serves you right," Ace muttered with a snicker.

"Oh, sorry," Luffy exclaimed.

Sabo removed Luffy's foot from his face and got comfortable on the couch. Luffy grabbed his brothers' shoulders with each arm and pulled them closer to him.

"That's better," he said firmly. "You guys are warm."

Ace pulled down the blanket from the top of the couch, draping it over Luffy, who adjusted it to himself and leaned back against the cushions. The fire was going strong. Sabo smoothed out his T-shirt.

"Oh . . ."

Ace glanced over at Sabo's soft noise and looked between them to see that Luffy had already fallen asleep.

"That was fast," he whispered. "Can you take him upstairs?"

"In a bit," Sabo murmured.

Ace adjusted the blanket around Luffy.

"Remember all the trouble he got into when he was little?" Sabo whispered.

Ace smiled. "He's still little, and he still gets into trouble."

"You know what I mean. Stealing food, falling out of trees . . ."

"He still does that."

Sabo rolled his eyes. "Fine. Okay. Nothing's changed."

Ace grinned. "And nothing will, until we get proper jobs."

Sabo leaned against the cushions, glancing at Luffy. "Winter's on its way. How much do we have saved up?"

"Enough to last us till the old man visits," Ace murmured. "He said he'd come by in March or April."

"What a great grandpa we have," Sabo muttered.

He watched the fire licking up the logs and curling away old news.

When Ace glanced at him again, he found that he'd fallen asleep, head resting on Luffy's.

"Oh, come on," he muttered in exasperation. "You were supposed to take him upstairs."

He stood and went to the fireplace. Once he'd extinguished the flames, he went back to the couch, fully intending to get Luffy up to bed and wake Sabo so they could finish studying.

Morning found the three of them fast asleep on the couch.

* * *

 **We'll be updating Mondays!**


	2. Disappearance

Autumn passed by all too quickly. Before anyone knew it, they were waking up to thick snowfall, causing much complaint for those who had to shovel sidewalks or walk through a storm.

"SNOW!"

But for Luffy, as with everything, it was cause for great excitement.

"Can we go outside today?" he exclaimed, waving his hands about in excitement at breakfast. "Let's have a snowball fight, and make snowmen, and have snow cream!"

"Yeah," Sabo said, smiling. He glanced at Ace, whose face was planted in his toast. "As soon as we're _all_ done eating."

Luffy leaned over and shook Ace's shoulder, making him sit up. "Ace, snowball fight," he said insistently.

"Huh?" Ace mumbled, wiping crumbs from his face. "Oh. Sure."

"I keep telling you to go to bed earlier," Sabo said with a stern look.

"Says the one who stays up late reading," Ace retorted. "And don't forget about Luffy."

"What about me?" Luffy said, preemptively indignant.

"You get up _way_ too early," Sabo said with a mock glare. "It's not natural."

"Well, you guys don't get up early enough," Luffy said with a sort of final attitude. "You're the weird ones."

"Says the weirdest one here," Ace muttered, going back to his toast.

Luffy hesitated. "Well—hurry up, okay? I wanna make snowmen."

"Yeah, yeah," Ace said, yawning as he returned to his toast.

* * *

The three of them got bundled up and trudged outside through the snow, their voices and laughter muffled. Luffy (wearing his straw hat) ran out, kicking up fresh piles as he went, and knelt, scooping up snow to start up a sculpture. Ace and Sabo glanced at each other and ran for separate places to build their own snowmen.

"Done!"

Luffy, his hat dusted with snow, stood by his sculpture proudly, a creation so lumpy it was a wonder the thing didn't fall apart. However, it did vaguely resemble a snowman.

"This is Mister Frost," he said, arms folded. "What'd you guys make?"

"Mine's better," Ace announced, stepping back to reveal his creation, a snowman far less lumpy than Luffy's.

"Nope," Luffy said stubbornly. "Mine's the best."

"Yours sucks!" Ace exclaimed, sticking out his tongue. "What is that supposed to be, a bunch of rocks? At least mine looks like what it's supposed to!"

Luffy hesitated. "Mine has _character!"_

"You don't even know what that means!"

"You two," Sabo said sternly, and they looked to him. He shook his head. "You're being silly. We all know my sculpture's the best."

He proudly gestured to his sculpture, a dragon's head and claws made to look like the creature was popping from the ground itself.

"Boo!" Luffy exclaimed. "It doesn't even have a body!"

"The body would take too long!" Sabo snapped.

"There's no wings!" Ace added, grinning.

"Wings would fall apart!" Sabo protested.

A snowball hit him in the cheek. He turned to glare at Luffy, who giggled.

"Nice, Luffy," Ace said in approval. A snowball struck his shoulder and he scowled. "Okay, this means war!"

He and Sabo dug up snow and began throwing them between each other and Luffy, laughing all the while. Luffy's aim and throwing strength was impressive for his age, matching up with that of his brothers, and he soon had Ace and Sabo wincing from strikes to their chests.

"Take that!" he exclaimed, raising his voice to be heard over the wind picking up. "I'm the best!"

"That was a fluke!" Sabo exclaimed with a good-natured grin. "Ace, let's tag-team him!"

"What?! No fair!"

"Sounds good," Ace exclaimed, grinning.

He and Sabo knelt, gathered up snowballs, and reeled back, preparing to throw—

"OW!"

Luffy bowed his head, hands flying up to his face. Ace and Sabo glanced at each other, dropped their unthrown snowballs, and hurried over to him.

"Luffy?" Ace exclaimed, making him look up. "What happened? Something get your eye?"

Luffy nodded, lowering his hands. Sabo gasped at the sight of the blood trickling from under Luffy's left eye.

"Something got in my eye," Luffy whimpered. "And it scratched me—"

"That's not a _scratch_ ," Ace muttered. "We gotta clean that up. Let's go inside."

Luffy blinked. "Oh. I—It doesn't hurt anymore. I'm okay."

"Still," Sabo said, tugging on his arm gently. "C'mon, we'll check your eye and then we'll have some hot cocoa."

Luffy looked up at him, fully ready to agree, but his eyes widened and he stumbled back a step.

"What the heck?!" he exclaimed, rubbing his eyes. "You look awful! Geez!"

He acted as if it were a personal insult, but Sabo only appeared concerned. He glanced at Ace. "Something on my face?"

"Nope," Ace said. He stepped forward, placing a hand on Luffy's shoulder. "Lu, your vision's probably all blurry, huh? Let's go."

Luffy turned to him now, only to yell and slap Ace's hand away.

"You—what is this?!" he cried, looking between Ace and Sabo. "What happened?! Get away! You don't look right—" He looked around. "Nothing looks right!" He gestured to a healthy tree a ways away, and a lovely house nearby. "That tree's all rotten, and that house is falling apart!"

Ace and Sabo glanced at each other again.

"We should get you to a doctor," Ace said slowly, holding out his hands and stepping towards Luffy again. "Lu, it's gonna be okay . . ."

But at that moment, at the moment Luffy was hesitating, looking as though he might accept Ace's help—the wind blew, and he gasped and clutched at his chest.

"Luffy?" Sabo said urgently, hurrying forward with Ace again.

"Something—my chest—hurts bad," Luffy cried, wincing.

"Oh, man," Ace said. "Maybe we've just been out here too long, let's go inside now—"

"Yeah," Sabo said. "Luffy . . ."

He and Ace led Luffy inside their house, where they got him out of winter clothes and into the living room. The wound under his eye had slowed its bleeding, beginning to scab over; it would surely form a scar.

"Luffy?" Ace said. "Does your chest still hurt?"

"No."

Ace's eyes narrowed briefly at the odd iciness of Luffy's tone. "Okay. That's good. How's your vision?"

Luffy looked up; Ace and Sabo were startled to see his gaze was as cold as the snow outside. "It's just fine," he said coolly.

"That's . . . good," Sabo said at last. "Do you want some hot cocoa?"

"No. I'm not hungry." Luffy stood from the couch.

"Luffy, are you feeling okay?" Ace demanded.

"' _Luffy, are you feeling okay?'"_ Luffy exclaimed, pulling an awful face with his mocking tone. "I don't need to share anything with someone as twisted as you. Look at yourselves. You look like maggots got you."

"There's no need to be rude," Sabo said sternly. "Luffy—"

Luffy turned an icy glare to Sabo, silencing him instantly. He removed his hat, examined it, made a face, and threw it to the floor in contempt. Without another word, he swept out of the room, and they heard him heading upstairs to his bedroom.

"Well," Ace said weakly, "it can't be teenage angst, right?"

Sabo gave him a stern look.

"Okay, okay," Ace muttered. "Do you think he has a stomachache?"

"He could be sick," Sabo agreed, kneeling to pick up the hat and dusting it off. "Let's talk to him later."

* * *

Luffy didn't leave his room until dinnertime, when he finally emerged and sat at the table.

"So," Sabo said, serving up soup, "Luffy . . ."

"You look like you're going to cry," Luffy said with a sneer. "What's wrong? You're so ugly like that."

Sabo breathed in and out slowly. "Are you feeling well? Do you need to talk about anything?"

"I need _you_ to _stop_ talking," Luffy snapped. "Your voice sounds like nails on a chalkboard."

"Luffy, you need to cut that out," Ace snapped, fiery temper flaring up. "If you're upset about something, talk about it! Don't act out like this, and don't take it out on us!"

Luffy ignored him, instead lifting a spoonful of soup to his mouth. Almost instantly he spat it back into the bowl. "This tastes horrible."

Sabo tried his own portion. "No, it doesn't," he said patiently. "Luffy, I think you're sick. Go upstairs and rest, okay? You don't have to finish this."

"Good riddance, then," Luffy said coldly, pushing back his chair and leaving the room.

Once his door had shut upstairs, Sabo sagged into his chair, putting his head in his hands.

"What _happened_ to him?" he said dejectedly. "That attitude came out of nowhere."

"He really might be sick," Ace murmured, temper fading. He glanced at Luffy's hat, resting on the kitchen counter—Luffy hadn't even spared it a glance during dinner. "But he didn't look feverish or anything . . ."

"Let's check on him tonight," Sabo said, slowly starting on his soup. "And if not tonight, tomorrow . . ."

* * *

Luffy looked up from his bed at the knock on the door.

"Luffy?" Ace called from the other side when there was no response. "Do you want a story tonight?"

"I hate stories," came the icy response.

A pause. "Can we come in?" Sabo called.

"No."

"Okay," Sabo said, twirling Luffy's hat in his hands. "See you tomorrow. Sweet dreams."

The door rattled with a kick from the other side, apparently indicating Luffy was already fed-up with them. They glanced at each other and headed downstairs.

Once there, they fell onto the couch in a silent agreement to skip studying that night.

"Should we call a doctor if this keeps up?" Ace muttered, scratching his head and staring at the ceiling.

Sabo gently set Luffy's hat on the couch corner and spread his arms in a shrug. "I guess so. I don't know what else we can do. It can't be teen angst—"

"I was kidding about that—"

"Fine time to kid," Sabo snapped, fiery temper flaring up. He sighed. "Sorry. Do you want anything? I can make drinks . . ."

"I'm good," Ace said. "I think I'll go turn in early, actually."

"Yeah," Sabo agreed, and they stood together, heading upstairs to their rooms.

"G'night."

"G'night."

* * *

To Ace and Sabo's increasing worry, Luffy's behavior hadn't improved by the next day; if anything, it had worsened, and when they forced him to hold still to check his temperature and heartbeat, his forehead and chest were ice-cold. Luffy seemed to only eat now out of necessity, for he complained about how horrid the taste was whenever something touched his tongue. He refused to rest in front of the fireplace with his brothers, and he taunted them whenever they tried to speak to him. He even tried to throw his hat in the fireplace, but Ace managed to save it, knowing how important it was (or had been) to him—the hat was kept safe in Ace's room from then on.

By the third day, Ace and Sabo were losing patience.

"How's your food?" Ace said through gritted teeth at dinner that night.

"How do you _think?"_ Luffy snapped, making a face. "It's terrible. Just give up trying to make good things. Everything's awful and it always will be."

Sabo took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and kept his mouth shut in case he lost his temper.

"You never complained about it until recently," Ace said stiffly. "You always ate whatever we gave you, even if we didn't have much that night."

"Who cares?" Luffy said coldly. "That doesn't change how much I hate this, or how terrible you both are."

Ace slammed his hands on the table, looking to Luffy with a heated glare, and Luffy actually flinched, but Sabo muttered, "Ace."

Ace slowly looked back at his food, settling. "Sorry."

Luffy was silent for the remainder of the meal. Once he had finished, he went upstairs, ignoring Sabo's offer to make hot cocoa.

"Lost my temper," Ace admitted.

"I could tell," Sabo muttered. "Let's call a doctor tomorrow."

"Yeah," Ace agreed, slumping where he sat. "That's probably for the best."

They finished their dinner and headed upstairs for another early bedtime, not even bothering to knock on Luffy's door this time.

* * *

Luffy lay in bed, fast asleep as fresh snow whirled outside his window. He suddenly sat bolt upright, eyes wide open as if he'd been shocked awake, and he looked around. The only thing of interest he spotted was the snowfall outside his window, and so he quietly slipped out of bed and went to look outside.

The flakes whirled around and danced as if performing a ballet, catching Luffy's eyes and filling his vision. He slowly lifted a hand and undid the latch, pushing open the window.

Snow flew inside instantly, and he shivered, though oddly his chest didn't feel at all cold. He watched the snow flying and heard the wind whistling and thought it was the prettiest thing he'd ever witnessed.

Something else caught his eye at that moment—something large, descending from the sky. Luffy squinted up into the darkness lit by the snow, trying to make out its shape.

He no longer had to try once the thing slowed to a stop, hovering in front of him.

It was a woman—or at least, something which had the body and face of one. Her eyes were yellow and piercing like a hawk against pale skin, her mouth upturned in a little smile, and her long spring-green hair fluttering about in the winds. The things which kept her hovering, and which gave a clue to the fact she was perhaps not human, were large wings, white as the snow around them and placed where arms would be on a typical woman. Her legs and feet appeared as those of a rather large hawk, sticking out from underneath her thick wool coat.

"Hello," she whispered, her voice dripping with saccharine sweetness but as cool as Luffy's recent attitude. "Do you know who I am?"

Luffy nodded slowly, shivering slightly.

"That's right," she said, though Luffy hadn't said a word. She flew forward suddenly, perching upon the windowsill with bent knees and forcing Luffy back a step before she leaned forward and wrapped her large wings around him, pulling him closer and resting her head on his chest.

"I thought so," she whispered. "Your heart is like mine." She looked at him with a smile, her wings still encasing his body. "Boy, will you come with me? I will take you to a wonderful place, and you won't ever have to worry about anything again."

Luffy hesitated. "I . . ."

He finally gave her a slow, hesitant nod. "Okay."

The woman's (if one could call her a woman, after all) smile grew wider. "Very good. Climb onto my back, and I will take you to my palace."

"Palace," Luffy repeated as if in a daze, slowly doing as she said.

"You're certain to love it," she promised, turning around and preparing to spring. "Hold on tight, now."

Luffy clung to her back as she leapt from the window, sailing into the air and climbing higher and higher, well above the trees. He looked down, and then felt something funny coursing through his body, and then the scenery changed. They were now sailing high above a village, dark with night and silent with sleep—and then they were above a still lake, and Luffy thought he saw two heads pop up from the water, but in the next moment they were flying over a dark forest with a magnificent tree in the center, and then up and up and up a snowy mountain.

"Here we are."

The woman had flown so quickly, the journey had taken practically no time at all. Luffy climbed off of her back and looked up in distant awe of the building in front of him: A grand palace, fit for royalty and blanketed in soft snow.

"This is my home," the woman said. "And now it is your home, too."

She kissed the top of Luffy's head. Luffy blinked, his head suddenly fuzzy—

And when she kissed him a second time, he forgot his true home, his brothers, his grandfather, and all he had ever loved.

"My home," he repeated dully.

The woman smiled. "Your home. Come with me, boy, I will show you to your room."

She began leading him into the palace, but then paused and looked back. "What are you called?"

Luffy frowned in confusion.

"Well . . . it's not important."

She turned, her coat swishing behind her, and Luffy followed blindly.

* * *

"Where is he?!"

"He wasn't outside—did you hear him going down the stairs last night?!"

"No, I was sleeping! What about you?!"

"I was sleeping! His window's open for some reason—"

"But there weren't any footprints!"

"The snow could've covered them up!"

"Why would he jump out from that height?!"

"He does stupid shit sometimes, and he's been acting weird, you never know—!"

Ace and Sabo paused, catching their breath, eyes wide with panic. They'd spent at least an hour searching for Luffy around and outside the house to no avail.

"Let's expand," Sabo said at last, struggling to stay calm. "We'll go ask everyone on the street, and we can get the police to investigate—"

"Yeah," Ace said. "Yeah. Good idea."

* * *

But no one had seen Luffy, and the police, after a few days, declared him a missing person; while they promised to continue searching, Ace and Sabo felt they had somehow given up on the case already.

"He's not the type to run away and not come back," Sabo said bleakly one evening on the couch, clutching Luffy's hat in his hands. "Sure, he was acting weird, but . . . ?"

"It's probably for the best," Ace said flatly. "If he was going to keep acting that way, good riddance he's gone—"

" _Ace!"_

Ace froze.

"Sorry," he muttered. His eyes were suddenly wet, and he bowed his head. "Shit, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that—"

"It's okay," Sabo said, his own eyes becoming watery. He placed Luffy's hat on the armrest and leaned into Ace, and they clasped their hands together. "Luffy's . . . gotta come back eventually. Maybe he's lost, maybe he got kidnapped . . . but he's gonna come b-back."

He stifled a sob. Ace let his head fall onto Sabo's shoulder, and Sabo's head fell onto Ace's, their throats tight with worry and the unspoken fear that maybe, just maybe, they would never see Luffy again.


	3. Departure

A week passed . . . and another . . . and then another. Ace and Sabo took up odd jobs again, shoveling snow off roads and helping deliver items.

It came to be that months had passed, and the snow was melting, and Luffy had yet to return. The police had stopped searching, and Ace and Sabo received sympathetic looks from neighbors on the street. They had only become more and more despondent over the winter, and the blooming spring blossoms, rather than bringing hope, brought only despair, being a marker of just how long it had been since Luffy had vanished.

"What're we going to tell the old man?" Sabo said one afternoon.

Ace glanced over to him. "You mean about how we're so incompetent we let Luffy vanish right from under our noses?" he said bitterly.

"It wasn't our fault," Sabo said, but his words were hollow. "The old man's coming by to visit soon, isn't he? What are we going to tell him?"

Ace cleared his throat. "'Hey, you old geezer. Good to see you. We're doing fine. Luffy? What about Luffy? Oh, you want to know where he is? Sorry, we don't have a goddamn clue, he up and disappeared a few months ago, we haven't seen him since then and the police have given up, isn't that splendid? Anyway, come into the kitchen, let's have lunch!'"

Sabo looked at him sternly. Ace sagged back into the couch, watching the wall. Luffy's hat hung on a hook, gathering thin dust.

"I'm going on a walk," he said at last. He stood. "I'll be back before dinner, I promise."

"You'd better."

Ace glanced back at him and gave him an awkward one-armed hug before he headed out.

* * *

Ace found himself wandering into the nearby forest, where a babbling brook fed into a pond resting in the clearing. He sat on a nearby rock and watched the water, glancing over as a crested tit fluttered down to perch upon a nearby branch, pecking at the ground.

"I don't suppose _you_ know where Luffy is," he said listlessly.

"I might, _chee_ ," the bird replied, cocking its head at Ace. "Who, _chee_ , is Luffy?"

"My little brother," Ace said. "He's been missing for months now."

The bird hopped in place. "Did he vanish, _chee_ , when the snow was falling, _chee?"_

"He did. We found his window open, and there was snow in his room . . . and he wasn't anywhere."

"Were there scratches, _chee_ , on the, _chee_ , windowsill?"

Ace looked up in thought. "Yeah . . . there were."

"Then I know where, _chee_ , your brother is, or at least I have, _chee_ , an idea."

Ace finally turned to look at the bird properly. "This better not be a joke," he said, eyes wide. "You know where he is?"

"I saw him, _chee_ , moons ago, in the cold," the bird chirped. "He rode upon the back of the Snow Queen herself, and they vanished into, _chee_ , the other world."

Ace stared at the bird, and the bird stared back, and suddenly Ace let out a yell and fell off his rock.

"You can _talk!"_ he exclaimed, pointing at the tiny bird.

The bird cocked its head. "I wondered, _chee_ , why you weren't surprised sooner. You, _chee_ , must be very slow."

"You can _talk_ ," Ace repeated. "What the hell?!"

"I mentioned, _chee_ , the other world," the bird said patiently. "I am from, _chee_ , that world."

Ace stared at the bird.

"My world has, _chee_ , magic, as you would call it," the bird chirped. "I myself, _chee_ , was once a human, now cursed to, _chee_ , live as a bird."

"Uh," Ace said intelligently. "Okay. Unless I'm going crazy with worry, I guess I'll have to believe you, since you're. _Talking._ "

The bird cocked its head. "You need to find your brother, _chee?"_

"Yes," Ace exclaimed, sitting upright and squatting next to the bird. " _Yes,_ for the love of—can you tell me how to get to that world?"

The bird hopped, turning and looking to the pond. "Return here at sunset, _chee_ , and jump into the pond," it said. "The water here, _chee_ , helps as a passage to that world."

"So you're telling me to go jump in a lake?" Ace said. "Is this a joke?"

The bird looked at him.

"Fine," Ace said, standing. "I'll come back here with my other brother at sunset, but I'm throwing _you_ in there if it doesn't work."

"Please don't, _chee_ ," the bird chirped in alarm.

Ace was already leaving.

* * *

"Okay, so a little bird talked to me, and it said it saw Luffy going into another world with the Snow Queen or something, and we have to go to that pond in the forest at sunset and jump in."

Sabo stared into Ace's smiling, expectant face.

"Listen, I know it sounds weird, but just trust me!"

"What kind of bird was it?" Sabo asked suspiciously.

"A crested tit," Ace said. "It had that little hair-thing on its head."

"Alright, then," Sabo said abruptly. "What do we need?"

"You believe it that easily?" Ace exclaimed.

"Well, yeah," Sabo said. "I'd like to see it for myself, but I don't think you're _lying_ . . . and if the bird had been a gull or a raven, it might've been lying, but _that_ kind of bird you can trust."

"Since when are you into augury?" Ace said in surprise.

"You pick up on things when you read a lot," Sabo said impatiently. "So, again, what do we need?"

* * *

Ace and Sabo reached the pond just before sunset, each carrying a small bag with food in (hopefully) watertight containers, extra clothes, money, water, and—just in case—daggers sheathed at their sides. Ace's bag held Luffy's hat, on the chance Luffy wanted it once they found him.

"So . . . where's the bird?" Sabo asked. He kept a neutral tone, but his eyes shone with excitement not seen in months.

"Dunno," Ace admitted. "Hey! Bird! We're here!"

No response.

"Guess it'll show up later," he said. sitting near a tree.

"Do you think we should've left a note?" Sabo asked. "I only just remembered."

Ace shrugged. "If all goes well, we'll be back with Luffy within a week. I think we're fine."

"If all goes well," Sabo echoed ominously. "I hope you're right."

He sat near Ace, and they watched the sunlight dance off the water. Just as it began to set—

" _Chee_ , hello!"

Ace looked around and then down as the crested tit from before fluttered down in front of them.

"You're both here, _chee_ ," the bird said. "I hope, _chee_ , you're ready?"

"A talking bird," Sabo exclaimed, grinning in delight.

"You're faster, _chee_ , than your brother, at least, _chee_ ," the bird remarked. Ace scowled as the bird continued, "In order to go, _chee_ , to that world, you must leap into the pond as the, _chee_ , sun sets."

"So . . . now?" Ace said, glancing to the sun.

"Any time _, chee_ , before dusk."

"Might as well not waste time," Sabo said abruptly. "Ace, let's go. Worst-case scenario, we get soaking wet."

"True," Ace agreed, standing with him. He glanced at the bird. "Thank you so much. Er, is there anything we can do for you?"

"If you, _chee_ , see someone named Vivi," the bird chirped, "would you, _chee_ , tell her that Pell sends _, chee_ , his regards?"

"Sure," Ace said, scratching his neck. "We'll keep an eye out."

"Much obliged, _chee_. Good luck, _chee!"_

The bird—Pell—fluttered across the ground and out of sight into the shrubbery.

Ace and Sabo turned to look at the pond.

"Running start?"

"Running start."

They backed up several steps, adjusted their items, and sprinted forward, leaping into the center of the pond with cannonball-like waves.

Underwater, their vision flickered, and they found each other's hands and clasped on tightly—each felt something funny coursing through them, and they remained underwater for who knew how long before emerging above the surface, gasping for air—

The area around them had changed. The sun was setting, and they were in a forest, but it was not _their_ forest—the trees were different.

They splashed for shore, trudging along the shallow bottom, and finally reached dry land, dripping wet and shivering in the cool air of twilight.

"Should've b-brought blankets," Ace muttered.

"They would've gotten w-wet," Sabo pointed out.

In a silent agreement, they began trudging through the forest blindly. The trees and brush looked no different from ones they might have found back home, but there was something in the air— _something_ which told them they weren't in their own world any longer.

By the time they emerged from the trees, their hair had dried somewhat, and the sun had sunk into a dusky sky. A ways ahead, to their left, they noticed the telltale sign of a nearby lake by the moonlight reflecting off its calm waters—to them, it appeared to be such a large lake! In the center lay a mountain, the bottom coated in trees, the middle dusted with snow, and the top covered in the stuff.

And there, to their right: lights—a town, civilization, _people_. They hurried on across the way, adjusting their bags and sheaths and occasionally glancing at the other.

At last, they were on a road lined with small houses. The windows were dark on this street except one place down the road, where soft light shone through the panes.

"Think we should ask to stay the night?" Sabo murmured.

"Worth a shot," Ace muttered. "I hope whoever lives in this world is normal."

Sabo raised an eyebrow.

"You know what I mean—we haven't seen anyone yet. The only person we've met _from_ this world was a _bird_."

"Good point," Sabo admitted. "If we're in danger, we run."

"Yep."

They approached the lit house and stopped at the door. After a moment's hesitation, they glanced at each other.

"You knock," Ace muttered.

"No, you," Sabo hissed.

"Come on, what if there really is something weird behind there?"

"We're in exactly the same place to get attacked!"

"Then you knock!"

"My hands are cold!"

"So are mine!"

"Then you knock!"

In the next second, their bickering fell away, for the door opened without either knocking.

"We can hear you," said the person who had opened the door. "Can you keep it down? Please?"

The person looked like a perfectly normal human, except for his unusually long nose. Ace and Sabo backed up a step.

"See, it was something weird after all!" Ace hissed. "A goblin!"

"I'm not a goblin!" the person exclaimed. "Don't be rude!"

"What do we do?" Sabo whispered. "A goblin might be dangerous—"

"I can hear you!"

"Usopp, is there trouble?" came a voice from inside the house.

"These guys are calling me a goblin," Usopp complained, turning to glance inside.

"I don't blame them! Have you seen yourself? Not to mention the light's not good over there!"

"Don't you start, too!" Usopp turned back to Ace and Sabo. "Uh, what are you doing here, anyway?"

"Usopp, shut the door, you're letting the heat out!"

"Give me a _second_ , these guys are still here!"

Sabo cleared his throat. "Okay, sorry about the goblin thing," he said hastily. "If it's not too much to ask, may we stay the night?"

Ace nodded hopefully. Usopp eyed them up and down.

"You can come in," he said at last, "but I dunno if you can stay."

He stepped aside, letting Ace and Sabo inside before shutting the door. He led them into a tiny parlor, already occupied.

"What now?" said the person on the couch. She, too, appeared to be a perfectly normal human: freckles and longish red hair stood out against pale skin, and she wore a rather fashionable shirt and skirt.

"Nami, they want to stay the night," Usopp explained, sitting with her on the couch. In the light, his features became clear—bright round eyes, bronze skin, and curly dark hair, in addition to loose overalls.

Nami raised an eyebrow at Ace and Sabo. "Why are you wet?"

They glanced down at themselves, still standing awkwardly. "Uh," Ace said. "We jumped in a pond."

Usopp and Nami glanced at each other.

"There was a very good reason for it," Sabo added helpfully.

"Uh-huh," Nami muttered. "Haven't seen you before. You're not from around here, are you?"

"Not at all," Ace said.

Usopp coughed, nudged Nami, and gestured to Ace's and Sabo's hips. Nami narrowed her eyes.

"What's with the knives?" she said suspiciously.

"Protection?" Ace said weakly. "We can put them away—"

"Uh, sit down, you look tired," Usopp interrupted. They gratefully sat on a perpendicular loveseat and stowed their daggers and sheaths in their bags.

"I guess you can stay if you pay rent," Nami said at last. "How much do you have?"

Sabo dug through his bag and turned to Ace. "Um, the money—"

"I knew you'd forget," Ace said with a quick grin. "I have it, don't worry."

He pulled out a few bills from his bag and handed them to Nami. "Will this be enough?"

Nami took the money, studied it, and scowled. "I didn't mean toy currency," she snapped. "Don't you have any _real_ money?"

"What kind of money _is_ that?" Usopp muttered, leaning over for a look.

Ace and Sabo glanced at each other.

"You know something?" Sabo said. "It didn't even occur to me the currency would be different here."

"Me either, funnily enough," Ace muttered. He turned back to Nami. "Look, that's the only kind of currency we have. We can leave if you want."

"Well, I might be able to exchange it somewhere," Nami admitted. "Where are you from?"

They told her. She and Usopp glanced at each other.

"Never heard of it," she said. "You know, you two are _really_ suspicious."

"Before we go on, are you two humans?" Sabo blurted out. "Sorry to ask, we were worried before coming in—"

"What—of course we're humans," Usopp said in surprise. He scowled. "Is this about my nose?"

"No, no," Ace said hastily. "It's a long story, that's all."

Nami folded her arms. "You're not helping your 'suspicious' status."

"It's a status now?!"

Usopp coughed rather loudly. "Shall I make us all tea?" he offered. "Nami, even if they don't stay, we can at least give them some tea—"

"Fine, sure," Nami said, rolling her eyes. "I'll keep an eye on them."

"We're right here," Sabo muttered.

"And you'll _stay_ there until I kick you out!"

"Then we might as well leave right now," Ace snapped as Usopp left. "We'll go sleep in that lake or something!"

"That's suicide, you idiot!"

"Yeah, well—"

"Ace," Sabo muttered. Ace backed down, still scowling.

"Can you set your bags by the door?" Nami asked. "But leave the money out, just in case."

"Yeah, sure," Sabo said, taking a deep breath. Ace took out the damp bills and coins, sticking them in his pocket before he and Sabo stood, going to the front door.

"Where are you going?" Nami exclaimed.

They glanced back. "We're doing what you asked," Sabo reminded her as they set their bags by the door and returned.

Nami frowned. "But you didn't have to get up, right?"

"Uh, yes, we did," Ace said slowly. "I'd rather not throw all that unless I have to."

Nami put a hand on her cheek, studying them.

"Do me a favor," she said eventually. She gestured to a photo frame on a nearby table. "Pick that up. Either one of you."

Sabo stood, but she snapped, " _Without_ getting up."

Sabo sat back down with a faint scowl. "I can't. My arms aren't _that_ long."

"Same here," Ace said, demonstrating his reach from the seat. "Are you saying you _can_ get that from where you are?"

Nami's eyes widened ever-so-slightly. "Don't tell me you're from—"

"Tea," Usopp announced, making a sudden return. Ace and Sabo looked up and let out exclamations of shock, for Usopp held none of the cups physically, but rather, he— _somehow_ kept them suspended in front of him without a drop spilled.

"Something wrong?" he asked, noticing Ace's and Sabo's expressions. Two of the cups floated over to them, and Usopp sat down, taking one cup in his hands and letting the other float to Nami, who took it gently and turned back to their guests.

"You gonna take them?" Usopp asked. "Do you not like tea?"

They cautiously reached up and took the cups from the air, studying them all over.

"How did you _do_ that?" Ace exclaimed, looking up at Usopp.

"Do what?" Usopp said in surprise.

"Usopp," Nami said. "They can't carry things without using their hands."

Usopp's eyes widened. "Wh—really? Oh man, you two, I'm sorry, were you born that way or—?"

"That's _normal_ for you?" Sabo demanded, eyes shining with excitement. "That's amazing!"

"What's amazing about it?"

Nami turned to Usopp. "I think they're from the other world."

Usopp's eyes widened comically at this and he almost fell out of his seat. "The—you're joking! I thought that was a myth!"

"You are, aren't you?" Nami demanded of Ace and Sabo.

"Y—Yeah," Ace said with a slow nod.

"So you must've used water as a portal," Nami murmured. "Since you're all wet—listen, I'll make you two a deal."

They waited.

"Give me all your money _and_ explain why and how you left your own world, and you can stay the night."

"All of it?" Sabo said indignantly.

Nami smirked. "It's useless here, I'm telling you right now. But it might make for a nice collection."

They glanced at each other.

"It's only a hundred kroner," Ace muttered. "We can spare that."

"Oh, fine," Sabo said reluctantly. "But if it was useless anyway, good luck to us finding food once we run out."

Ace handed over the bills and coins to Nami, who studied them gleefully before stowing them away.

"You're so greedy you'll even take alien money?" Usopp muttered.

"Shush," Nami snapped. "So, you two . . ."

"Yeah, okay," Ace said with a sigh. "A few months ago, during the winter . . ."

* * *

"Really," Nami said with interest. "So that pond in the forest is a portal?"

"Suppose so," Sabo said with a shrug. "We don't know exactly how it works."

"Are you crying?" Ace said, looking to Usopp.

Usopp sniffled loudly. "It's just—y-you're doing all this for your little brother?! That's—that's so sweet! You guys are the best!"

"Get a hold of yourself," Nami muttered. "But . . . it is impressive."

"I don't suppose you've seen him?" Sabo asked hopefully. "He's got messy black hair, roundish eyes, and he smiles all the time—"

They shook their heads.

"You said the bird told you Luffy was with someone?" Nami said.

"He said he was with the Snow Queen," Ace said.

"Just making sure," Nami said. She sighed. "That's really strange, for _her_ to kidnap someone . . . but you might as well give up now."

"Kidnap?" Sabo repeated.

"I can't imagine anyone _willingly_ going with her."

"Well, where is she?" Ace asked impatiently. "We need to find Luffy as soon as possible."

"I told you, you might as well give up," Nami said. "No one can possibly get past her guards on the mountain."

"Nami, don't say that!" Usopp cried. "These two are ready to risk life and limb for their little brother—you can't tell them to just give up now!"

"Usopp," Nami said without looking at him. "Tell me how many people have reached her castle _without_ becoming injured or _worse_."

Usopp hesitated.

"The answer is zero, Usopp, at least that we know of." Nami looked back up at Ace and Sabo. "Trying to scale that mountain is a fool's errand."

"Don't care," Ace said abruptly. "If Luffy's there, that's where we're going."

"And now we know exactly where to go," Sabo added, a determined gleam in his eyes.

"It _is_ really dangerous," Usopp whispered. "Just crossing that lake could get you killed if you're not careful—"

"We're going anyway," Ace snapped.

"Yeah, I'm just—I'm just saying, be _really_ careful," Usopp exclaimed. "Actually, when you leave tomorrow, go talk to Robin and Franky in the town, they might be able to help you out."

"Got it," Sabo said. "By the way, speaking of names, do either of you know someone named Vivi?"

Nami's eyebrows shot up. "Yeah! She actually lives at the foot of the mountain. How did you know her name?"

"So we'll see her once we're there," Ace concluded. "Oh—that bird told us to send her his regards."

"That's weird," Usopp muttered.

Minutes of silence passed, and they finished their tea.

"Do either of you know anything about those guards the Snow Queen has?" Sabo asked at last, setting his cup down.

They glanced at each other.

"No," Nami admitted. "Vivi and Brook never talked about it, and I've only heard they're deadly."

"We do have daggers," Ace murmured. "Do you think they could help?"

"Well, maybe," Usopp said hopefully. "Depending on where you are, if you get hurt, _they_ might be able to help you."

Ace and Sabo waited for him to clarify. Finally, Sabo sighed and said, "Who's _they?"_

Usopp grinned. " _They're_ these really amazing—"

"Come to think of it, you don't have useable money," Nami said suddenly, looking up in thought. "Franky's sure to help you if you tell him why you need assistance, he's such a softie . . . but Robin . . . ?"

"Do you have anything interesting from your world?" Usopp asked. "Maybe she'd be willing to trade something."

"Just sandwiches, clothes, and the knives," Ace said with a shrug. "Plus Luffy's hat. Nothing we can give away."

"She'd probably be willing to trade something for stories about your world," Nami said thoughtfully. "You know, tell her how you get along being only able to pick things up physically—and whatever other differences there are."

"Worth a shot, huh?" Sabo murmured. "Alright. Both of you, thanks very much."

"You're probably going to die," Nami said cheerfully. "Hope you have fun on the way."

Eventually, Ace and Sabo were led to the bedroom where they'd sleep that night—neither minded sharing the bed. Once they'd bade goodnight, the door was shut, and they got into bed.

"The Snow Queen," Sabo murmured. "Intimidating name."

"Not intimidating enough," Ace muttered. "If she messes with us after _kidnapping Luffy_ —you can bet I'm going to kill her myself."

"Don't leave me out," Sabo said darkly. "I don't care who or what she is . . . she'll get burned if she messes with our family."

Ace gave a single, tight nod before he drifted off, Sabo following a moment later.


	4. Blind Alley

Ace and Sabo sat bolt upright in bed, eyes wide and darting, hearts pounding in their chests. They spotted each other in the dim room and relaxed after a moment.

"Nightmare, huh?" Sabo whispered.

Ace nodded. "You, too?"

"Yeah. I thought—" He shook his head. "Nothing. It wasn't real."

"Yeah."

In a silent agreement, they climbed out of bed and headed for the door. They found their way to the kitchen by the smell of food and discovered Usopp buttering toast while eggs fried on the stove. As they watched, Usopp looked to the stove, and the pan lifted and shook, the eggs sliding around.

"Oh, you're up!" Usopp exclaimed, spotting them out of the corner of his eye. "Do you want some food?"

"If it's not too much trouble," Sabo said. "But we should go afterwards." He glanced at Ace, who nodded. They seated themselves at the small table.

Usopp gave them a nod and turned back to his task. He glanced at the stove again and hastily shut off the burner without moving, sliding the eggs onto a plate and going over to set the toast with them.

"Eat up," he said, handing it to Ace and Sabo. They thanked him and dug in.

After a minute, Ace looked up, sensing Usopp's eyes on them. "It's good," he said helpfully.

"Oh! Thanks," Usopp said with a smile. "Um, if it's okay—how old is your brother? Luffy?"

They paused.

"He's thirteen," Sabo said. "Fourteen in May."

Usopp's eyes widened a fraction. "I'm thirteen, too—fourteen next month."

"You are?" Ace said in surprise. "How old is Nami?"

"Fourteen."

"That's impressive, that you two are living here alone," Sabo remarked. "Ace and I are sixteen."

"I'm seventeen," Ace corrected. "And you're seventeen in a couple weeks."

Sabo smacked his forehead. "Right, I forgot—geez, your birthday passed, I knew that—"

"I know, I know," Ace said, resting his head in a hand. "It didn't really feel like a birthday without Luffy . . ."

"What's he like?" Usopp said suddenly, wringing his hands together. "Luffy, that is . . ."

"Before he . . ." Sabo murmured. He smiled. "He was so happy all the time, even when things went wrong—he'd complain sometimes, but he's the best friend you'd ever have."

"He's also really strong for his age," Ace added with a proud grin. "But he'd never beat us in arm-wrestling!"

"He really loves meat, and he loved it when we read him stories," Sabo said, his lip beginning to tremble.

"And he—" Ace choked back a sob. "He always sees the good in everyone, and he does stupid things like fall out of trees or trip over nothing—"

He wiped at his eyes, and Sabo, realizing his own eyes were wet, did the same. They looked to Usopp to apologize and found he was on the verge of tears as well.

"Oh," he said, turning away. "Sorry, um—hey, listen, when you save him—if you want, and if you can, you can come here for another visit before you go back to your world—with Luffy."

"Yeah," Sabo said with a gentle smile. "I think he'd love to meet you."

He and Ace turned back to their meal as Usopp composed himself. They soon finished it off and stood, heading for the door where their bags were. Once they checked that everything was there (deciding to leave the daggers hidden until they departed the town), they hoisted the bags onto their shoulders and turned to Usopp.

"Thank you for letting us stay," Ace said politely. "Once we find Luffy—we'll try to come back."

"You'd better save him," Usopp burst out. "And try really hard not to die!"

"That's part of the plan," Sabo said. "Thank you again, and the same to Nami."

They turned away, opened the door, and stepped out, shutting it gently behind them. The sun was just beginning to rise, the mountain in the distance blocking most of the rays.

"We should probably wait for a bit to find those two," Sabo said, glancing down the street. "Robin and . . ."

"Franky," Ace supplied. "You're right, they might not be up yet. I think we should check out the lake first—Usopp and Nami made it sound like a death trap."

They made their way down the road and out of the village, heading to the lake. Tiny waves lapped up on the sand—it was hardly a hotspot for a holiday; the sand appeared wet and unpleasant and barely extended beyond the water before becoming soft grass.

"Doesn't _look_ deadly," Ace said at last, his eyes travelling across the calm waters and up the large mountain. "Woo, that's a way to go . . . think it extends all the way around that mountain?"

"It must," Sabo agreed. "They made it sound like there wasn't any other way to get there, and it would take all day to walk to the other side even if there was land."

"But it couldn't have been the distance," Ace mused. "Could it? The danger, I mean."

"Maybe it's something _in_ the water," Sabo said ominously. His eyes suddenly lit up. "Like the kraken!"

"The kraken isn't real," Ace muttered. "And would the water really be that calm if something like _that_ was swimming around in it?"

"Well, good point," Sabo admitted. "But when we're crossing, we shouldn't let our guard down."

". . . Should we let our guard down on land?"

"Well, no," Sabo said, observing the mountain for signs of movement (though at that distance, he would need the eyes of a hawk to spy anything). "But going from what I've read, I think we can trust Usopp and Nami, and by extension the ones they recommended we talk to."

"What about a beached mermaid? Can we trust that?"

"Good question," Sabo muttered, eyes now travelling to the forest surrounding the lower half of the mountain. "Mermaids are oft written as temptresses or sirens who lure men to their deaths. The question is if a beached one would do the same . . ."

" _Sabo_ ," Ace said insistently, tugging on Sabo's shirt sleeve. Sabo finally turned around and saw what Ace had been staring at for a while: A figure with a human-like torso and a long, smooth, fishlike tail where legs should have been. They were a ways away and appeared to be staring back at them.

"Is that—?" Sabo hissed. "Think we should check it out?"

"That's what I was asking you! She looks like she's in trouble—I've never met a mermaid, but I'm pretty sure they're supposed to be in the water."

"Then let's go help her," Sabo said, striding towards the figure.

"Sabo," Ace exclaimed, but Sabo ignored him, and Ace hurried after him in a moment.

When they got to the figure, they awkwardly stopped a few feet away and crouched. The humanoid lay on their stomach and stared up at them with defiant blue eyes, one covered by long blonde bangs, and the other below an eyebrow curled into a spiral at the end. The torso was smooth and flat where hair, nipples, and a belly button would be on a normal human, though a bit chubby like a small manatee. Perhaps the most noticeable thing about them, besides the brilliant blue tail melting into their torso, was their webbed hands, fingers connected by flaps of flesh.

"So . . . do we trust her?" Ace whispered.

"I don't think she can move, so it's a moot point," Sabo whispered.

"Are you going to sit there and whisper all day?" the creature snapped suddenly. "Or are you going to kill me?"

Despite the harshness of the words, they lacked any real vitriol, and the creature suddenly appeared exhausted.

"Why would we kill you?" Ace said after a moment, eyeing their body with faint interest. "You haven't done anything yet."

"I'm in your territory," came the weak reply. "You've every right to kill me."

"You haven't done anything," Sabo echoed. "We're not going to kill you."

"Then leave."

"Can we ask you some questions?" Ace said.

"Fine, torture me before I die."

Sabo frowned. "So . . . you're a mermaid?"

"Sure, that's one name," the creature muttered. "No . . . I think it'd be mer _man_ , wouldn't it?"

"If you're called _he_ , then yes," Ace said, rolling his eyes. "Do you have a name?"

"Sanji."

Sabo nodded. "I'm Sabo, this is Ace. Nice to meet you."

Sanji shoved his face into the sand. "Leave me alone," he mumbled around the grit.

"While we're here—have you seen our little brother?" Ace asked. "He's got messy black hair, roundish eyes—"

"You should know that if I'd seen him, he'd probably be dead," Sanji muttered, lifting his head to reveal a face now covered in sand. He reached up and brushed it off.

"Then . . . if you haven't seen him, that's all, I suppose," Sabo said. "Do you need help getting back in the water? You look pretty weak."

"I'm not _weak_ ," Sanji snapped, trying to push himself up, but he fell back onto his stomach a second later.

"So you're not good on land?" Ace remarked. "Look, we can throw you back in the lake or something, it's not a big deal."

Sanji stared at them incredulously. "You'd help _me?"_

"We have some people to meet, but sure, we have time to spare," Sabo said with a shrug. "Hey, how'd you end up here, anyway?"

"There was a storm two nights ago, I ended up washed up and couldn't get back to the water—you're not from around here, are you?"

Sanji coughed. It was clear he wouldn't last until next morning should he stay on land.

"Never mind that," Ace said. "Sabo, on three?"

He and Sabo shuffled over to Sanji on either end, Ace with the torso and Sabo with the tail, and they crab-walked to the lake so the water lapped at their calves.

"One," Sabo said.

"Two," Ace said. They pulled back.

" _Three!"_

They threw Sanji into the water with a mighty heave, and the resulting splash soaked them both. Sanji sank underneath the water, and popped back up a second later, gills flapping on either side of his neck.

"Oh," he exclaimed with a relieved smile, showing the sharp teeth of a carnivore and sounding much stronger already. "That's better."

"We'll be on our way," Ace said with a nod.

"Hey, wait—"

Sanji briefly dove under the surface and came back up again, slightly farther out this time.

"Thank you," he called. "I'll repay you eventually!"

"Uh, okay," Sabo said with a nervous grin and a wave. He and Ace turned away as Sanji dove under the water again, this time not resurfacing.

"Hey," Ace said as they made their way back to the village, the sun nearly above the mountain now.

"Hey," Sabo said.

"We just had a conversation with a merman."

"Yeah."

Ace glanced at Sabo to see a shining smile and eyes sparkling.

"You are too happy about this."

"I want to live here," Sabo sighed. "All we need is a dragon, and it's perfect!"

Ace snorted. "Don't get greedy! We're leaving as soon as we get Luffy, anyway."

"Right, right," Sabo said, gathering himself. He stole one last glance back at the mountain and the lake as they walked on.

When they reached the village, they awkwardly stood in a street, attracting a few glances, before beginning to move, asking around if anyone knew where they could find someone named Robin, or Franky. They found that Robin was closest to them where they were, and set out to find her by the directions a kind woman had given them. After becoming lost and hastily backtracking several times, they finally found a large glasshouse and ducked inside.

"Hello?" Ace called, looking around. The plants surrounded the aisles—some grew from small pots, some from larger ones; some sprouted vines which climbed up to the ceiling, some spread across the ground, forcing them to step over the leaves; and some held budding flowers of all sorts of sizes, emitting almost dizzying perfumes if they leaned in too close.

"Maybe she's not here," Sabo murmured.

"Or maybe," came a voice behind them, "she's been here all along."

They whipped around in surprise to see a tall woman emerging from behind giant leaves with a mysterious smile. Her hair was long and dark and silken, and her eyes, one sea-green and one earth-brown, were large against her fallow skin, decorated in a pale green loose shirt and yellow skirt.

"Not really," she added. "I only just came in. May I help you?"

"I think so," Sabo said. "Are you Robin?"

"I am."

"Then we do need your help," Ace said. "Please. Only, we don't have any money . . ."

"Really," Robin murmured, moving past them. She knelt and picked up a watering can, sprinkling its contents over a row of flowers, whose petals twirled and danced with the shower on their own. "Why should I help you?"

"We . . . don't know," Sabo admitted. "We met some people named Nami and Usopp, and they recommended we see you for help."

"Oh, so Nami took all your money?" Robin said, turning to them in amusement.

"She's known for doing that?!" Ace exclaimed. Several plants twitched and shrank slightly.

"Please keep your voice down," Robin murmured. "They don't like it."

Ace glanced around as if the vines would start strangling him. "Oh. Sorry," he whispered.

"What do you need help with?" Robin asked, setting the watering can down and idly examining pairs of shears in varying sizes.

Sabo eyed the shears apprehensively. "Our brother's been kidnapped," he explained. "And it seems he's been taken to the mountain by someone called the Snow Queen."

Robin arched an eyebrow. "Her? That's odd. She's not known for kidnapping."

"Someone told us they saw him with her the night he vanished," Ace explained. "I don't know why she took him either, but we have to bring him home."

"You'll probably die," Robin remarked. "Just crossing that lake is dangerous . . . then again, if you manage to make it across the water, there are those who would help you. I think the Snow Queen and her guards are the only enemies you'll face, unless you meet a vicious animal."

"Her guards," Sabo repeated. "Do you know anything about them?"

Robin eyed a pair of shears, which lifted into the air and floated to a nearby vine, clipping off dead leaves. "All I know is that no one mad enough to try to meet _her_ has made it past those guards."

Ace frowned. "Everyone's been telling us we're going to die. Assuming that's not part of the plan, do you have any way to help us?"

Robin smiled, turning her gaze back to them as the shears floated back to the table. "I can brew up a couple of potions, but if you don't have money . . ."

"Would you like to trade stories instead?" Sabo offered, remembering what Nami had said. "You see, we're not—we're not actually _from_ this world."

"What do you mean?"

"We're from . . . well, we came here through a water portal," Ace said awkwardly. "A little bird told us to jump into a pond at sunset to get here."

Robin's eyes lit up at this. "Another world? I've only heard rumors—is it true you can only move things physically?"

"Afraid so," Sabo said with a grin. "We saw magic for the first time last night, it's such a great thing—"

"Magic?"

"Oh, anything you do that isn't physical," Ace explained hastily. "I suppose we'd call potions magic, too—spells, curses, moving things without hands, that sort of thing—"

"You have a special name for it," Robin said with a smile. "How wonderful. Excuse me, let me pull up some chairs—are things very different in your world?"

She disappeared down the aisle and came back carrying three chairs in midair, which she set down so everyone could sit.

"Things look the same on the surface, I think," Sabo said in response. "But as far as we know, we don't have merfolk, for one thing . . ."

"Potions, either," Ace added, brushing some hair aside.

"Is the food very different?" Robin asked.

Ace and Sabo took their food from their bags and showed her.

"Why, it's not different at all," she said in surprise. "And those knives—?"

"Ah, they're for protection," Ace said. "We'll leave them in there—"

"They're solid steel," Sabo added.

"Steel?"

* * *

The three of them talked until high noon; Ace and Sabo learned that while everyone could move things non-physically, only non-humans (such as nymphs and merfolk) could perform spells and the like more than just that, and it took quite a bit of training to be able to properly brew potions. Robin learned of the existence of steel (though her request to keep one of the daggers was denied), and was surprised to know that everyone got along just fine only being able to move things physically.

"Thank you very much," Robin said at last during a lull, the sun shining overhead. "In exchange for that . . . if you'll wait here, I'll brew you two up something useful."

She stood and took some shears, using one with her hands to clip away some leaves on one plant, and using the other with her mind to clip at a different plant.

"Does that . . . hurt them?" Sabo asked tentatively.

"Oh, of course not," Robin said matter-of-factly. "Something without a soul can't feel pain, can it? I'll be right back."

She hurried away, the leaves in her arms, as the shears floated back to the table and landed with a _clink_. Sabo blinked and hastily removed the vines which had begun snaking around his left eye, and Ace lifted away the ones creeping about his midsection.

"Think we can trust her?" Ace murmured.

"I think so," Sabo said. "Despite what we've been told . . . we've yet to meet anyone after our heads. Besides, I don't think someone who takes care of plants is _evil_."

"Mm. Well," Ace said, resting an arm on the back of his chair, "I trust your judgement."

Sabo brought up his legs so he sat cross-legged, looking around the room. Ace eyed him and smiled.

"What is it?" Sabo said, noticing this.

"You look a lot like Luffy when you do that," Ace remarked. "Like everything's a new adventure, something to be explored . . ."

"Don't act like you don't feel the same way," Sabo exclaimed, though he smiled at the comparison.

Ace grinned. "Don't drag me into this!"

"You're the one who _started_ it!"

They laughed; something they hadn't done in months. But soon, that faded away, and Ace looked upwards through the glass ceiling at the dull blue sky.

"Do you think he's okay?" he murmured.

Sabo gave him a nod. "With how Nami and Robin talked about it, that Snow Queen rarely, if ever, kidnaps people. So . . . it doesn't sound like she'd go to the trouble of ki-killing someone in this case . . . but that's just a guess."

Ace sagged into his chair. "Sabo . . ."

"Mm?"

"He's alive." Ace smiled at the ceiling, his eyes shining with tears. "Luffy's alive, isn't he? We're—we're gonna see him again, he's gonna come home."

Sabo nodded, blinking back tears of his own. "Y-Yeah," he said thickly with a shaky smile. "I mean . . . we know where he is . . . so it's just a matter of time before we find him."

They fell silent, each taking a sudden interest in the plants surrounding them. Sabo gently pushed away the vines attempting to slither around him, and Ace had to turn away from a twirling flower with a strong scent.

"They like you."

Ace and Sabo looked up to find that Robin had returned, carrying two small stopped-up vials full of cherry-red liquid.

"If you had cruel intentions . . ." she continued, approaching them, "they might have tried to strangle you."

"Is that so?" Sabo asked, eyeing the vines.

"Is that wine?" Ace asked, nodding to the bottles.

"Not even close," Robin said lightly. "Should you drink this, it will keep you warm for thirty minutes to an hour. If you make it to the snowy parts of the mountain, this may come in handy."

She handed the bottles off to each of them, and they examined them curiously before storing them in their bags.

"I should warn you, it's very spicy," she added.

"Thank you so much," Ace said with a smile. He stood with Sabo. "If there's anything we can do to repay you—?"

"Try to come back alive, won't you?"

"That is the plan," Sabo said with a nod and a smile. "Thank you again. Er, do you know which way we'd go to find someone named Franky?"

Robin covered a smile with her hand. "Oh, yes—turn left when you exit, then right, and then down the road until you see his shop on your right. You can't miss him. I suppose you're looking for him to get yourselves a boat?"

"Nami only said he could help, so I suppose that's why," Ace admitted.

He, Sabo, and Robin bade farewell to each other one last time before the two headed out.

"What did she mean, we can't miss him?" Sabo murmured as they strolled down the street.

Ace shrugged. "Probably just a weird guy," he muttered.

Some passerby on the street threw the brothers odd glances—one even stopped to ask them where they were from, to which they awkwardly answered they were travelling and just passing through.

Finally, they reached a place with a big, open doorway, a crooked sign reading _Franky's Shop_ hanging above them. They glanced at each other and stepped inside.

"Hello?" Sabo called. "Excuse us . . ."

Someone came out from behind some shelves, and they jumped. The man was nearly as tall as the doorway, with bright blue hair styled upwards, a chin split in two, tanned skin, and an open vest over shorts. The oddest thing about him, however, was most certainly his prosthetics: His arms (one to the shoulder, one to the elbow), his legs (one to the knee, one just the foot), and his nose were of polished metal.

"About time," the man said with a broad grin. "You're the first customers I've had all day! Hey, you don't look familiar—name's Franky!"

"N—Nice to meet you," Ace said, recovering from this boisterous introduction. "I'm Ace, this is Sabo."

"Travelers, are you?" Franky asked, throwing his arms open wide. "Hope you enjoy your stay! What can I help you with?"

"I'm afraid we're not staying long," Sabo said awkwardly. "And, er, we do need your help, but we . . . don't have any money."

"Then why should I help you?" Franky said abruptly, dropping his arms and raising an eyebrow.

"Er . . . it's _really_ important?" Ace offered.

"Why don't you have any money?" Franky added. "Seems a little odd."

"You see," Sabo explained, "we stayed overnight at someone's house, their names are Usopp and Nami—"

"Oh, so Nami took your money," Franky said sympathetically with a shake of his head. "Sorry to hear that, bro. What do you need my help for, anyway?"

Ace and Sabo glanced at each other.

"This'll take a bit to explain," Sabo said at last. "Is there somewhere we can sit?"

* * *

Ace and Sabo leaned back warily as Franky sobbed loudly into a handkerchief.

"Ahh, you're so—!" he cried. "Coming all this way from another world just to save your brother—!"

He suddenly grabbed them both in a tight hug.

"I'm not crying!" he exclaimed as tears dripped down his face.

"Okay," Ace muttered. "So . . . now you know. Don't suppose you could help us?"

"After that?! I'd be glad to!" Franky exclaimed, pulling back and composing himself. "Now . . . I'd be happy to make you a rowboat, but even with that heart-wrenching story, without any money, it won't be very good."

"As long as we make it to the other side, it's fine," Sabo reassured.

"You might not even do that," Franky said, heading to his shelves to look around. Planks of wood began to float off from various sections as he went on, "That lake's dangerous, so the most advice I can give you is to sail at night. Can't say for sure if they sleep at sundown, but it's worth a shot."

"'They?'" Ace muttered.

"Yeah, they'll drag you into the lake if they notice you," Franky said absently, turning to the planks of wood. "Like I said, they might sleep at night, I wouldn't know—though if they do find you, don't look at their eyes and just get out of there before they capsize the boat."

Sabo raised an eyebrow. "Uh . . . okay. Thank you."

"I'll have this done in an hour," Franky said, looking up. "Feel free to stick around and chat, or come back before sunset."

"I think we'll wander around for a while," Ace said, standing. "Thank you, we'll be back soon. Sabo?"

"Yeah," Sabo said, standing as well.

They said goodbye and exited the shop.

* * *

The two of them wandered around the streets and soon came upon an open plaza, a bustling market with a fountain in the center. They strolled around the various stalls and took advantage of food samples being offered, hoping to save their own stashes for as long as possible.

"Oh—"

They found themselves face-to-face with Nami.

"Haven't died yet, then?" she said, folding her arms.

"We haven't even left town!" Ace exclaimed. "Honestly—"

"We're fine," Sabo interrupted, nudging Ace. "Robin was able to help us, and Franky's working on a boat. Thank you for the advice."

"No trouble at all," Nami said carelessly.

"And it seems you're _known_ for taking others' money?" Ace said, scowling.

Nami grinned. "They told you?"

Ace glowered. "Now listen here—"

"Ace, it's not a big deal," Sabo said gently. "Really."

Ace backed down reluctantly.

"Usopp was upset earlier," Nami added. "What did you do?"

"We told him about Luffy," Sabo explained. "He's around Usopp's age, after all."

"Oh," Nami said in surprise. "I . . . I see."

She glanced to the ground and fiddled with the basket hanging from her arm.

"It'll be sunny tomorrow," she said at last. "You should be able to talk to Vivi during the day. She's so sweet, she's sure to help you if you need it."

"Thanks," Ace said in surprise. "You said she lives at the foot of the mountain?"

"Yes, in her tree," Nami said with a fond smile. "You can't miss it, she's the largest one in the forest."

"I see," Sabo said, thinking Nami had misspoken—he would soon find out she hadn't.

They parted soon after, Nami surprisingly wishing them the best of luck, and Ace and Sabo left the market. The sun did little to warm the air, though the temperature was comfortable nonetheless.

They found themselves on the outskirts of town, opposite the lakeside, and discovered a dirt road leading outwards into a field, presumably to other civilizations.

And before they knew it, the sun was beginning to set, so they began heading back to Franky's shop, ready to begin their trip to the mountain.


	5. Uneasiness

"Here it is!"

Franky gestured to the completed rowboat on the floor of the shop, the oars resting inside. "This'll get you across that lake for sure, if you're super stealthy!"

"This is really nice," Sabo said, kneeling to examine the woodwork. "You did this all in just a few hours?"

"Just about one," Franky corrected with a proud grin.

"It won't spring any leaks, will it?" Ace asked. "We can't swim at all."

Franky found this greatly amusing and actually laughed out loud. "Trying to cross a lake when you can't swim! Are you out of your minds?!"

"We've already been told several times we're headed for certain death, and we're still going," Sabo pointed out, "so we might be."

"Fair point. In any case, you can take this out to the lake—you know which way to go? Yeah? Good—take this out to the lake, but don't head out until the sun's good and set."

"Understood," Ace said with a short nod. "Thank you again . . ."

"Everyone's been so helpful, despite that we can't pay," Sabo said wistfully. "This is a nice town."

"Isn't it?" Franky exclaimed. "I don't suppose you two plan to stay after you find your kid brother?"

"No, sorry," Ace said quickly. "We've got our own home to get back to."

"Ah, well," Franky said in disappointment. "Maybe a visit sometime."

* * *

The sun showed only a sliver above the horizon when Ace and Sabo began carrying the rowboat down the street. They made a few wrong turns, but ultimately ended up at the lake's shore, the waves lapping at their boots. As one, they set the boat on the grass and climbed inside, testing the seats. The boat fit them well, and, after a brief argument, they decided to take turns rowing across.

"How long do you reckon it'll take to scale that mountain?" Ace asked at last. They sat on the grass.

"Beats me," Sabo said, taking off his backpack to check that he still had everything. He showed the contents to Ace. "Anything missing?"

"Nope," Ace said after a quick scan. He checked his own pack and took out Luffy's straw hat, twirling it in his hands.

Sabo rested his chin in a hand with a sigh. "He's probably scared . . ."

"Who knows," Ace murmured. "Hard to say as long as that kidnapper doesn't plan on hurting him."

He and Sabo briefly clenched their hands, Ace around Luffy's hat, Sabo around his face.

"He's okay," Sabo said firmly. "He has to be."

"He's resilient, despite his size," Ace agreed with a small smile, stowing the hat back in his pack.

The discussion of Luffy's attitude in the days before he'd gone missing remained unspoken, the words on their tongues but never released. The silence was thick as they busied themselves, refusing to bring it up.

Before they knew it, the moon was rising in the sky, lighting up the glassy lake. They stood, set the boat in the waves, and pushed it out until it could float on its own. They climbed inside, and Sabo used the oars to push them away from shore before beginning to row.

"Keep an eye out for the dangerous thing," Sabo said, as he was facing away from their destination. Ace nodded, eyes darting around the calm waters and sometimes up to the mountain in the distance.

Their ride was silent save for the splashing of the oars and the occasional sigh or yawn. Sabo saw the town growing gradually smaller, and Ace saw the mountain island growing gradually larger.

"When do you want me to take over rowing?" Ace asked. They had traveled perhaps two or three miles out.

"Now," Sabo admitted, "but I'll row a little longer."

"Suit yourself."

Ace looked to the sky in the distance. "The stars are the same . . ."

"Hm?"

"They're the same as home—I see Sagittarius. The moon looks the same, too."

Sabo glanced around, his rowing slowed. "You're right. That's interesting."

"I know that look," Ace said with some amusement. "We're still not staying long."

"But now I'm curious," Sabo muttered, returning to rowing. "This world clearly exists on a separate plane from ours, and it has different geography yet the same stars and moon. It'd be a pretty fascinating thing to publish a paper on, wouldn't it?"

"First you'd have to get scholars to believe another world _exists_ ," Ace pointed out. "Good luck. I would have been more skeptical about it if I had heard it from anyone but a talking bird."

Sabo sighed quite loudly.

"We're not staying in the first place," Ace added. "We're going up there, we'll get Luffy back, and then we're going straight home."

"I wonder how we'll manage that," Sabo said thoughtfully. "Do we just have to jump into the pond at sunset again?"

"Worth a shot, isn't it? Good thing neither pond's deep enough to really drown in."

Sabo smiled. "This lake sure is, though."

Ace shuddered. "Don't remind me."

He peered over the side, but with the reflected moonlight and the dark of night, the depths were hidden.

Their conversation fell silent, and Sabo rowed, and then Ace took over—

It had been nearly two hours since they'd set out; both were yawning, and they had reached the halfway point, the mountain growing ever-larger before them.

And then Ace abruptly stopped rowing.

"Sabo," he hissed. "Something's there."

Sabo turned to see something poking out of the water—something resembling a human head.

"Do you think it's the danger?" Sabo whispered.

The head vanished underwater.

Ace tensed and reached for his pack, and Sabo flung up his arms defensively as the head reappeared inches from their boat.

"What are you doing here?" the creature demanded, bobbing in the lake. Short green hair grew upon the chubby head like moss, and stoic features rested on the tan face, so human-like. Gills were faintly visible on either side of the neck.

Sabo's eyes lit up. "Are you a merman?" he asked with an excited grin.

The creature looked up in surprise. "I—yes, that's one word—?" He glanced at Ace. "Wow, you two aren't from around here, are you?"

"Everyone's saying that," Ace muttered.

"We're not," Sabo admitted. He turned to Ace. "Can we stop here for a moment? I want to talk to him for a few minutes, then we can go."

Ace, of course, couldn't refuse Sabo's hopeful face.

"Yeah," he said, scratching his head, "I guess. Let me know when you're done."

He released the oars, turning his gaze skyward to stargaze as he settled back.

"What's your name?" Sabo asked, turning back to the merman.

"Uh . . . Zoro," he said, still surprised by Sabo's reaction. He scowled again. "What are you two doing here?"

"We're trying to get to the other side," Sabo said, as if it wasn't clear. "May I ask you something?" He peered at Zoro's neck. "Er, I suppose you breathe underwater with your gills, right? And you don't do well on land, but you can breathe air?"

Zoro sighed through his nose. "This lake isn't your territory."

Sabo smiled. "Sorry, we're only passing through."

"You don't 'pass through.'"

Sabo's smile faded. "What do you mean?"

Zoro blinked slowly. "My eyes are up here."

"Ah," Sabo said, turning his gaze from Zoro's neck to his pale eyes. "Right, sor . . ."

He trailed off as Zoro blinked slowly again. Zoro's irises, surrounding his now strangely small pupils, had begun to glow like a lamp. Bright blues, greens, and greys appeared to swirl within like a whirlpool—and, as with a whirlpool, Sabo began to drown.

"Wh . . ." he murmured, his gaze locked with Zoro's. He twitched and began reaching for his bag, intending to seize the knife within. But—

"Leave it," Zoro ordered in a soft and commanding voice. Sabo's arm dropped, and he stared, dumbstruck, into Zoro's eyes, utterly entranced.

Ace watched the stars winking above and yawned. There was Ursa Major, and Ursa Minor . . . there was Orion's Belt. . . . They really should get going soon, he thought. Surely Sabo had had enough time by now—

Why wasn't he talking anymore?

Ace sat up and glanced to where Sabo knelt, staring at Zoro, whose eyes—there was something funny about those eyes all of a sudden, and why was Zoro grabbing Sabo's arm, _why was he pulling, why wasn't Sabo doing anything—_

" _Hey!"_ Ace yelled, scrambling forward. He pulled off his pack and yanked out his knife, throwing out an arm and pushing Sabo back into the boat. He glanced at Sabo and found him unresponsive, still transfixed, and when he looked to Zoro with a fiery glare, Zoro turned to him, and they locked eyes.

Caught off-guard, Ace shuddered, eyes widening. He slowly raised the knife—

"Drop it," Zoro ordered in that same commanding tone, eyes pulsing with hypnotic light and spiraling colors. Ace hesitated, his hand shook, and his grip began to loosen—

 _"Leave them alone, you fucking moron!"_

Something leapt out of the water like a dolphin, barreling into Zoro and knocking him away. Ace dropped the knife, weakly held the side of the boat, lowered his head, and dipped his face in the water. He came back up with a gasp, lucid again. He looked at Sabo, who was still in a trance, though now he was beginning to twitch; Ace placed his hand on the back of Sabo's head and gently dunked it into the lake. Sabo came up gasping and sputtering.

"Ow," he muttered, holding his head and swaying. "Everything's spinning . . ."

"Are you okay?" Ace demanded, gripping his shoulders.

"Yeah," Sabo said, wincing and blinking hard. "My head hurts . . . hey, he almost drowned me!"

"Yeah, and he almost got me, too," Ace muttered. "But . . ."

They looked out to the lake. Another head now bobbed next to Zoro's—a blonde mop covering pale skin. This one and Zoro were squabbling about something, gesturing wildly and baring teeth (it seemed Zoro's eyes had returned to normal).

"That's Sanji," Sabo said in surprise. At the sound of his name, Sanji turned in their direction.

"Oh, shit, let's get out of here," Ace exclaimed. He seized the oars.

"No, _wait!"_ Sanji exclaimed. He vanished underwater and appeared next to their boat, startling them—they backed away and half-covered their eyes.

"Hey, I _stopped_ this guy from drowning you two, do you really think I'm going to kill you now?!" Sanji snapped. Zoro surfaced next to him, glaring.

"Why did you stop me?" he demanded. "We could've eaten their arms, at least—"

"They're the ones who—" Sanji hesitated. "Don't laugh, you shit algae! I was beached during that storm a couple days ago, and they threw me back in!"

Zoro burst out laughing. Sanji smacked him upside the head.

"I did wonder where you went," he admitted. He glanced at Ace and Sabo with another scowl. "Why'd they bother saving you?"

Ace scowled right back, shielding Sabo, who shot him an annoyed look. "It's like you said. We're not from around here, and no one bothered to tell us what was so dangerous about this lake!"

"Anyway," Sanji said, "I said I'd repay them, so if they have to cross, we're going to fucking help them. Got it?"

"I don't see why I'm involved in this," Zoro muttered petulantly.

"Because," Sanji said, smirking, "you would cry your eyes out if I died, so _you_ owe them, too."

"I don't cry," Zoro snapped, poking Sanji sharply in the forehead. "But I guess this place would be boring without your stupid voice, so whatever."

"We'll get you to the other shore," Sanji promised, turning back to Ace and Sabo. He swam to the other side of the boat. "Hey, algae, get that side, we're going to take them."

"Don't order me around," Zoro muttered. He and Sanji each grabbed a side of the boat and began swimming for the shore of the mountain's forest, far faster than anyone could row.

Ace and Sabo soon settled back warily, sheathing their knives again.

"You may be strangers to this area, but it's still pretty odd you had no idea about our abilities," Sanji remarked eventually. He glanced up. "Though that does explain why you had no qualms about helping me."

Sabo sighed through his nose. "We're from a different realm. It's a long story."

"Oh, places like that are real?" Zoro muttered. "Is everyone there as dumb as you two?"

"Watch it," Ace hissed.

"Why are you here? Did you get lost?" Sanji asked. "Don't worry if you did, I promise you this algae has a worse sense of direction than either of you—"

"Don't make me come over there," Zoro snarled, baring his teeth.

"It's like we said," Ace said impatiently. "Our little brother's here. We need to get him back."

"The hell's he doing here?"

"Someone told us he was kidnapped by the Snow Queen," Sabo explained.

Sanji and Zoro glanced at each other.

"This wouldn't have been last winter?" Sanji said thoughtfully.

"It was," Ace said.

"Then we must've seen him," Zoro said. " _She_ came flying over our lake again, going back to her castle, but this time she had someone on her back, didn't she?"

"Right," Sanji said. "And I said, didn't I, that it was pretty strange for her to have someone with her, _no_ one goes with her of their own volition, and—"

"So you did see him!" Ace exclaimed, smiling.

"I suppose so."

Ace and Sabo looked at each other, smiling in relief.

"Then . . . he's definitely there," Sabo exclaimed.

"Seems that way," Zoro muttered. "Wonder why she'd kidnap a kid, though? She doesn't care for most people."

"Who knows," Sanji said carelessly.

They were almost to shore, and Zoro and Sanji released the boat.

"The sandbar starts about here," Sanji said. "Row the rest of the way, but don't expect any favors if you have to cross again!"

"We'll work something out," Ace said with a grin. "Thanks so much."

"Come by again and I'll be happy to show you around the lake bottom," Zoro said with a toothy grin. Sanji smacked him upside the head, and they began bickering again, swimming away and then diving underwater so their argument faded.

"Sabo?" Ace said as he picked up the oars again.

"Hm?"

"No offense, but I'm no longer listening to your judgement on who to trust."

Sabo folded his arms, turning away. "Sanji didn't do anything earlier," he mumbled. "Didn't think the other one would try to kill us."

They struck land and stood. Sabo stumbled and righted himself, and Ace tossed him his pack, picking up his own. Not too far from them lay another rowboat—to whom it belonged to was a mystery.

They sloshed through the surf to dry land, stepping onto lush grass. The dark forest loomed ominously.

They glanced at each other and, as one, took out their sheathed knives and strapped them to their hips. The grass was silent under their shoes, and as they entered the trees, soft earth stuck to their wet soles.

Moonlight shone in thin shafts in between the trees, barely lighting their way. They walked slowly, eyes wide and darting.

"We should find somewhere to sleep," Sabo whispered. Though they saw no one else near, it seemed appropriate for him to whisper.

"Yeah," Ace murmured.

They walked . . . and walked . . . and walked.

"Ace . . ."

"Hm?"

"I think we passed this tree two times already."

Ace glanced at the tree and scowled as if it had done him a personal injustice.

"We're lost," Sabo added helpfully.

"I got that." Ace folded his arms. "I suppose this is a good a place as any to rest, isn't it?"

"I believe you're right. But before you do so, I must inquire, with all due respect . . . what are you gentlemen doing here?"

Ace grinned and glanced at Sabo. "What kind of voice was that? I didn't know you did imitations."

Sabo stared at him. "That wasn't . . . me."

Ace frowned. "Come on, it wasn't _me_."

Each felt a tap on their shoulder. Their eyes flew wide and they turned around.

A tall figure, illuminated by the moonlight, stood not an arm's length from them. The figure was human-like in a certain aspect, and their head held a dark, bushy afro, their body covered by a fine suit and one hand holding a violin and bow. None of this would have been alarming if the figure had flesh, but rather they appeared as a bone-white skeleton, hollow eyes staring them down and mouth forever grinning.

"Pardon me, gentlemen," the skeleton said. "I don't mean to startle you, but I must ask again: What business do you have here?"

Ace and Sabo screamed, and Ace flung out a hand, shoving Sabo back as he drew out his knife and, panicking, shoved the blade directly between the skeleton's ribs through the coat.

The skeleton looked down, and then looked back up.

"That was rather rude," came the miffed remark. "Why, now I shall have to sew this hole up—"

Ace pulled back his knife, sheathed it, and seized Sabo's arm.

" _Run!"_

They turned away from the skeleton, but they had not taken three strides when they heard music.

They froze and turned around. The skeleton had lifted the violin to chin-height, drawing the bow across the strings in a soothing lullaby.

Ace and Sabo stepped back, intending to run again, but as the music filled their ears, they began to feel woozy. They looked to each other, but their panic was dulled by the exhaustion and sleepiness spreading through them to the bone.

Eyes falling shut, they keeled over on the forest floor and knew no more.


	6. Inquiry

Ace yawned and blearily opened his eyes, squinting. The late morning sun shone overhead in the cool air, and someone's face was in the way of the bright sky. This face seemed to belong to a pretty girl, which was all Ace could tell, being half-awake.

"Oh," he mumbled. "Okay. An angel. I'm in heaven. I'm dead."

"You're not dead," the girl whispered. "I'm sorry to disappoint, but I'm not an angel."

"Okay."

Ace closed his eyes again. The one with him sat back, twiddling her thumbs.

Ace's eyes flew open and he sat up wildly, looking around. He was sitting in soft grass, and not far away was an enormous oak tree, branches spreading out to cast shadows a few feet away. Sabo lay close by, still fast asleep.

And sitting next to Ace was—

"Are you well?" the girl asked. Though she was indeed humanoid, and quite pretty, she wore no clothes, and her long, leafy hair was forest-green. Her whole body was oak-brown, including her large eyes, and she was thin as a stick, looking almost as brittle.

Ace stared at her, and then turned away and crawled over to Sabo. He began shaking him and hissing his name until Sabo stirred, yawning.

"Come on, we've gotta go," he exclaimed.

"Oh," Sabo said, startled, as he woke up. He sat up and looked around, spotting the girl and narrowing his eyes. "Who—?"

"I don't know—" Ace turned back to her. "Hey! Where are our things?!"

The girl held up her arms protectively. "I don't know," she murmured. "I think Brook must have them. He is the one who brought you here, after all."

"Who are you, anyway?" Sabo asked, eyes darting up and down her curiously.

"I'm called Vivi."

"Vivi," Ace muttered. His eyebrows shot up. "Vivi!"

"Yes?"

"At least we know we can trust you," Sabo said in relief, smiling and relaxing. "We met some people who mentioned you."

"Did you?" Vivi adjusted her legs underneath her.

"I'm Sabo, this is Ace," Sabo said, gesturing to each of them. They came closer to her and settled down to sit on the grass. "We need to reach the top of the mountain, but we shouldn't do that without our things—please, could you tell us where this Brook is? And if you don't mind, what are you?"

"I'm a dryad," Vivi said shyly. She gestured to the magnificent oak tree. "This is . . . me. My tree. I'm the only oak in the forest, you see . . . er, Misters Ace and Sabo, how did you cross that lake? Surely Misters Zoro and Sanji would have stopped you?"

"They tried," Ace said dryly. "Turned out that Sanji owed us a favor after all, so we got out alive."

"I haven't seen you around the town," Vivi added. "Where are you from?"

* * *

"Oh . . ."

Droplets of water welled up in Vivi's eyes, worming down her wooden face.

"How wonderful of you," she murmured. "To come all this way for your brother . . ."

"Sorry to go off-topic, but do all dryads resemble human girls?" Sabo asked, ever-curious.

Vivi tilted her head. "I wouldn't know. Dryads only live in oak trees, and as I said, I'm the only one in this forest. This is just the form I prefer to take."

"I see . . ."

"Before we forget," Ace said, "someone named Pell asked us to send you his regards."

" _Pell!"_ Vivi cried, startling them. "He's okay?!"

"He's a small bird, but yes, he seemed healthy otherwise," Sabo said with a weak grin.

"Oh, goodness," Vivi exclaimed with a broad smile, happy tears spilling down her cheeks. "He vanished a year ago . . . oh, I'm so happy he's okay! Thank you so much!"

"Just passing it on," Ace said awkwardly. "Sorry to cut this short, but we should get going as soon as possible. Could you tell us where this Brook is?"

"He's inside me."

Ace and Sabo stared, blinked, and their eyes slowly traveled down to Vivi's torso.

Vivi covered her mouth with a giggle. "I'm sorry, let me rephrase that—he's inside my tree. Did you see him at all last night? You can't miss him, I'm told he's quite tall."

"You mean the skeleton?!" Sabo exclaimed.

"Yes, with the nice suit."

"He did something weird," Ace muttered, scowling. "Is he really your friend?"

"He didn't harm you," Vivi said, "did he?"

They glanced at each other.

"Suppose not," Ace said grudgingly. "So what's to stop us from opening up the hidden doorway or whatever it is, punching him, and grabbing our stuff?"

"Why did you throw in the part about punching him?" Vivi said in alarm. "And I would really rather you not—he can't enter sunlight, it would turn him to dust."

"Excuse me for a moment, I have a skeleton to turn to dust," Sabo said, standing.

" _Don't!"_

Sabo reluctantly sat back down. He and Ace, grudgingly resigned to the fact they'd have to stay nearby until nightfall to get their things back, settled down, and Vivi lay on her front.

"The Snow Queen," she murmured. "You said your brother was taken by her . . ."

She looked up at them. "I don't like her. She brings snow to this place whenever she swoops overhead, even if it's not wintertime. _She's_ the reason it always snows on the mountaintop." Vivi sighed. "But . . . her guards are dangerous things. I've never seen them personally, but I've been told they're scary."

"So we've heard," Sabo said with a nod. "We're going regardless."

"Do be careful."

Ace grinned. "No promises, but we're not planning on dying."

Vivi rolled over so she lay on her back. "I should tell you about these woods . . . I don't know if you noticed, but it's very easy to get lost."

"Lost?" Sabo said. "Oh, we never got lost. Don't you worry about us, we know what we're doing."

"We did get lost," Ace said. Sabo eyed him in annoyance.

"I'm the only dryad in this forest," Vivi reiterated. "But some of the other trees will still try to trick you. They might block your path, or shift just enough to cause confusion . . . but if you leave at sunrise, I'd be happy to help you through."

"You'd help us, too?" Sabo exclaimed.

"Well . . . it is nice to have company, if only for a day," Vivi explained with a smile. "Brook and I can't see each other often, since I sleep without sunlight and he hides from it. And besides . . . you did tell me about Pell . . . plus, Brook would have killed you if _he_ thought you had bad intentions."

She sat up. "Would you like some cold tea? I have herbs from a nice woman named Miss Robin."

* * *

Vivi, it turned out, could manipulate her environment—she was able to make plants grow or shrink, though growing took a toll quite soon without enough water to sustain the larger form, and she was able to draw out water for tea from a small patch of grass, assuring Ace and Sabo that grass was quite resilient and would regain the water within days.

The tea was indeed cold but good, with a sharp strawberry-like flavor. The cups were china (a gift from Nami, Vivi said). Ace and Sabo, having not eaten since yesterday, began to feel slight hunger pains, and had barely mentioned this when Vivi jumped up, hurried into the woods, and returned with handfuls of large berries.

"They're in season, and it's not like I'm eating them," she said with a nervous smile. Ace and Sabo accepted the gift gratefully, their appetite satiated for the time being.

Ace fell asleep for a short nap, and awoke to find Sabo doing the same, and then Sabo awoke soon. Before they knew it, the sun was touching the horizon, and Vivi was beginning to yawn.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "I should retire . . . sleep well, I hope to see you tomorrow . . ."

She stood and shuffled to her tree. When she reached the trunk, she leaned against it, wrapping her arms around, and she melted inside like hot butter until she had completely vanished from sight. The big tree itself seemed to shudder and yawn before falling still.

Ace and Sabo watched the sun as it sank below the forest, touching the horizon, and finally vanished completely, leaving behind a dull sky. But it was only when the moon rose and the stars began to twinkle that they heard a creaking from Vivi's tree.

They turned and saw the skeleton—Brook—stepping out of the hollowed trunk. The round door shut behind him, and it was invisible save for the small knot serving as a doorknob. Brook held his violin and bow in one hand, and Ace's and Sabo's packs in the other.

Ace and Sabo promptly covered their ears and scooted backwards. Brook approached them slowly, set their packs down in front of them, and backed away, sitting several feet from them. When they still didn't uncover their ears, he set his violin and bow on the ground and held up his hands. Finally, Ace and Sabo removed their hands, eyeing him suspiciously as they inspected their packs. To their relief, everything was still in place, undamaged—the food, the clothes, the knives, and Luffy's hat.

"I apologize for last night, gentlemen," Brook said. They waited. "You see, I wasn't sure of your intentions, and after your attack, I thought it was safer to put you to sleep."

"That's . . . fair, I guess," Ace admitted. "What the hell _are_ you, anyway?"

Brook chuckled. "Why, I'm a skeleton, couldn't you tell? A necromancer brought me back to a cursed life many years ago. Miss Vivi and I keep each other safe, in a way . . . I protect her at night from any intruders, and she allows me to stay inside her trunk during the day."

"How did you do the violin thing?" Sabo asked.

"I am a hypnotist," Brook explained. "My music allows me to manipulate emotions and desires, to a certain extent."

"Okay," Ace said, leaning back.

"It allows me a free pass across the lake, as well," Brook added with a laugh. "Misters Zoro and Sanji were quite upset about what I did to them the first time. I do believe they don't care for me."

"What did you do?" Sabo muttered.

"I swore to them I would take that to my grave," Brook said solemnly. He suddenly laughed and slapped his knee. "But I've already been there and back, haven't I?!"

They groaned, but smiled nonetheless.

"In any case, Misters Ace and Sabo," Brook said, straightening his ascot, "I heard your tale before I fell asleep. How noble, really, travelling from another world for this . . ."

"Hardly," Sabo protested. "Luffy's our brother. Of course we're going to get him back."

"I'm not sure everyone would risk life and limb like you two," Brook remarked. "But then again, I'm not one to talk, I've already lost my life!"

"Are you going to keep this up?!" Ace exclaimed.

Brook laughed, throwing his head back.

"You're pretty nice, after all," Sabo said with a smile. "Thanks for giving our things back, at least."

Ace grinned. "I mean, you did take them away in the first place . . ."

"Precautions, precautions," Brook said, waving a hand.

It wasn't long after this that Sabo began to yawn.

"I'm about ready to sleep," he admitted. "Sorry . . ."

"I was going to stay up a bit longer," Ace said.

"Ah, Mister Sabo—" Brook reached for his violin. "I could help, if you like?"

Sabo glanced at Ace and eyed the violin apprehensively.

"Uh," he said. "No, that's okay."

He settled down, and Ace and Brook were quiet for quite some time, even when Sabo's deep breathing indicated he had fallen fast asleep.

"Mister Ace," Brook said at last. "You're a very kind person."

Ace glanced up.

"I can tell," Brook continued. "You two must have many friends in your world."

Ace smiled. "Hardly. I was bullied all the time when I was little."

"Bullied?"

"My dad . . . was a pretty infamous criminal," Ace explained. His hands tightened around the grass. "People said . . . y'know. I was awful, bad, scum of the earth, I should go die . . . all of that good stuff."

He smiled, looking at Sabo. "Sabo and Luffy—they were the only ones, 'sides the old man, who liked me."

"Then . . . you three aren't blood-related," Brook said, the realization dawning on him.

Ace chuckled. "Not at all. The old man was friends with my dad, so he got stuck with me when my parents died. Sabo ran away from awful parents, and no one knows where the hell Luffy's dad is."

He lay on his back and gazed up at the stars. "It's really just the three of us. The old man, Luffy's grandpa, he comes around sometimes, but . . ."

Ace suddenly sat up and covered his face, groaning. "Why did I tell you all that?! Did you do something?!"

Brook held up his hands to show the lack of violin, shaking his head. "Not at all! Mister Ace, I won't share this if you prefer . . . but you should know that there's no shame in getting things off your chest."

Ace lowered his hands, bringing his knees up to his chest. "Yeah, don't spread it around. Anyway . . . we're still brothers, y'know? More or less, we've only got each other, so—Sabo and I are getting Luffy back, no matter what."

"I understand," Brook said mournfully. "But, Mister Ace . . . you mustn't think you're invincible. I am living proof of that."

Ace narrowed his eyes. The moonlight cast odd shadows across them and the grass.

"But I'm no longer living, after all!" Brook exclaimed, laughing again.

"You ruined the mood _you_ set!" Ace exclaimed incredulously.

"Ah, you're right!" Brook cried dramatically. "How disastrous this is!"

"I'm jealous of Vivi all of a sudden," Ace muttered. " _She_ doesn't have to put up with this!"

"How harsh!"

* * *

When Ace and Sabo awoke, the sun was just rising. Brook had vanished, and as they got themselves up, readying their things, Vivi melted out of her tree so silently they jumped when they spotted her.

"Good morning," she said with a sunny smile, strolling over to them. "If you're ready . . . ?"

"Yeah," Sabo said with a grateful smile. "You were right; Brook was actually really nice."

"Isn't he?" Vivi said, glancing to her trunk where Brook was now hidden. "You two are ready, aren't you? Good—now, follow me, and don't lose sight."

She strode into the forest, and Ace and Sabo hurried after her.

The trees around them were eerie, and the breeze floated through their branches, sometimes like whispers, sometimes like laughter. More than once, they thought they saw entire trunks shift and bushes hop, but Vivi ignored all this and went around the offending flora, Ace and Sabo throwing apprehensive looks at the trees all the way.

The ground beneath their feet was soft earth, barely making a sound with their steps. It was late morning by the time the earth began to become rockier, and the trees began to thin.

At last, they were out of the woods. The mountain loomed before them, the occasional tree growing, and farther up they could see snow, clouds circling the summit.

"Thank you so much," Sabo said with a smile. "Really, we—"

"It's no trouble," Vivi exclaimed. "Don't worry about it—do be careful, won't you?"

"We won't die," Ace said with a good-natured grin. "Have a good day."

Vivi waved farewell as they turned and began to hike up the mountain. When they glanced back, she was gone.

"How long do you reckon it'll take to reach the top?" Ace asked as they started walking, finding whatever pathway they could.

"We'll be there by evening, or tomorrow morning," Sabo guessed, staring up at their destination. "Luffy's there . . ."

"C'mon!" Ace exclaimed, suddenly running up the slope. "Sabo, we're so close!"

"Wait up!" Sabo exclaimed, startled, but he grinned as he chased after his brother.


	7. No One in Sight

Despite their eager start, Ace and Sabo were soon forced to slow their ascent in order to save energy. The mountain was quite beautiful from where they were; the occasional scraggly bush grew here and there, and the forest, slowly growing smaller, was lovely from that height.

"Our knives," Ace said soon, and they paused, took off their packs, and strapped their knives to their hips, continuing their hike as soon as they put the packs back on their shoulders. The path they followed was barely there, as if the mountain had once been well-traversed but now had few or no visitors.

"This would be a great place for vacation," Sabo remarked, looking around as they walked, "if it weren't for the circumstances."

"Do you want to try getting past the lake again?" Ace muttered. "I sure don't fancy— _look out!"_

He reached out and seized Sabo's wrist just as he lost his footing. Sabo grabbed Ace's arm and got himself standing again, brushing himself off.

"I'm fine," he said.

"That could've been dangerous," Ace protested as they started walking again.

"I would've only slipped a bit, maybe gotten bruised—it wasn't anything life-threatening."

"Still."

Sabo fell silent, the air thick between them.

"Do you think he misses us?" Ace murmured. The sun shone above them.

Sabo looked up to the mountain peak. "Yes," he said, mainly to comfort Ace. Ace sensed his intentions, but only nodded to the answer.

They zigged and zagged up the mountain, the air growing colder as they walked, and they shivered, silently wishing they had brought thicker clothing.

When the sun was above them, shining above the thick clouds, they stopped, sat on some rocks, and took out their food. They ate, staring out at the deceptively calm lake and the lovely forest—and the town, so far away now.

"'S been almost three days, hasn't it?" Ace murmured. "Since we came here."

Sabo nodded. "It's like I said, isn't it? We'll be home before the week's over."

Ace took another bite. Sabo glanced at him.

"You know what would be great?" he said slyly. "Finding a dragon."

Ace glanced up, all but rolling his eyes at him. "Again with the dragon! We've already seen mermen, a living skeleton, and a dryad, what more do you want?"

Sabo grinned. "Well, y'know—a _dragon_."

Ace rapped him on the head with his knuckles. "Greedy!" he exclaimed, but he was grinning, and his mood had lifted.

"Remember when Luffy fell out of that tree?" Sabo said, returning to his food.

"Be more specific."

"When he was seven."

"Yeah, go on."

Sabo smiled. "He fell so far, and we were so scared—"

"Speak for yourself!"

"Don't lie to yourself! We were so scared, but he was hardly hurt at all, but he still cried so much?"

"He's a tough kid," Ace agreed with a fond smile. "Physically, that is, not the crying part."

"It's so funny when we buy a cake or pie," Sabo continued, staring into the distance, "and we hide it on the highest shelf, but he's so determined to reach it, even when we put away all the stools and things . . ."

"He dragged the whole couch into the kitchen to get at that apple pie," Ace remembered with a laugh. "He's so strong!"

"Nothing stops him when he wants something," Sabo said, smiling. "We should probably glue the couch down."

"Remember when he . . ."

"And then we . . ."

* * *

Their reminiscing lasted so long, the sun was in their eyes before they realized their food had long since vanished. They hurriedly stood, shoved the containers into their packs, and carried on their way.

"That Snow Queen, or whoever," Ace said, he and Sabo keeping pace with each other. "Everyone's been saying it's weird for her to kidnap someone."

"Yeah."

"So why'd she take _Luffy?"_

Sabo shook his head, a despondent look on his face. "Don't know. And, it is weird that she was in our realm in the first place, isn't it?"

"Who knows?"

"Good point." Sabo shrugged, shifting the bag on his back. "Maybe she frequently visits our world . . . in the winter. But then . . . I never heard of anyone disappearing in the wintertime before like Luffy . . . and surely Luffy would've mentioned it if he'd seen her before, you know how excited he gets about weird things."

"Sabo, does any of this really matter?" Ace snapped. "Luffy's kidnapped, that Snow Queen has him, and we're going to get him back."

Sabo nodded. "Right."

". . . Sorry. I'm just worried."

"'S fine." Sabo sighed and looked upwards; the air was becoming quite chilly. "Sanji and Zoro, they mentioned seeing Luffy riding on her back, right?"

"They did. Pell did, too."

"Can she fly?"

Silence.

"Oh," Ace said. "I guess she can. Vivi said she swoops above, too . . . and it'd be easier to get up this mountain with wings."

Sabo nodded. "If she . . . refuses to give him back . . ."

"Then we'll force our way past her," Ace said stonily. "With whatever means necessary."

His hand twitched towards his dagger as he said this.

It wasn't long before snow began crunching under their feet. Clouds covered the sky above them, and oddly enough, they swirled all around them—blotting out the sun to their backs and sides, completely covering their view of anything but the mountain ahead.

"A-Are you ok-kay?" Ace asked, shivering.

"'M fine," Sabo said. "St-tick together—"

They walked close, keeping each other warm in the icy wind whirling into their faces. The snow only worsened as they walked up, the wind screaming in their ears.

When they could barely see for the thick snowfall, Ace called, "The po-potions—should we drink them—?"

"N-Not yet," Sabo called. "I think that—"

He and Ace froze. Eerie grinding and chinking emerged from the ground not far ahead of them. They stood close to each other, drawing their knives in preparation.

Several _somethings_ rose from the ground, just visible in the snow. They were humanoid, but skinny and made entirely of clouded ice. Each limb was jagged and spiky like a sea urchin, and areas where faces should have been were disturbingly blank.

"The . . . gua-guards," Ace hissed, arms shaking.

"We've . . . gotta fight," Sabo murmured.

The nearest ice creature wasted no time, thrusting a spear-like limb towards Ace, who leapt aside. He clumsily thrust his knife forward, but it only chipped off a few flakes of the body. Sabo swung down on the creature's limb, but only created a small crack.

They looked to each other frantically.

"Maybe th-they'll give up eventually!" Sabo exclaimed, shivering.

"That's all we've g-got!" Ace agreed.

An ice creature swung towards his neck and he ducked, frantically kicking out for its leg, but he only succeeded in hurting his foot. Sabo hurried around to the back of one of them and swung his knife for what seemed like a weak point, but had only just cut through when the limb reattached itself and the creature turned for him.

"They c-can—they regenerate!" Sabo called.

Ace swore loudly and desperately punched one in what seemed to be its head, ducking down when others tried to surround him. He blew on his hurt fist as the creature recovered. Both his and Sabo's movements were becoming sluggish and clumsier due to the frigid air, but neither dared pause the fight to take out their packs and drink the potions they'd been given, for surely the creatures would kill them at the first opportunity.

Ace straightened back up, holding his knife again with trembling hands, but the creatures in front of him vanished.

He looked behind him. No creatures to be seen.

And then he heard a scream.

Sabo had dropped his knife and was scrambling to get a hold of the icy arm seizing the left side of his face. The ice was clinging to his skin, spreading down his cheek, onto his neck and his shoulder—and another creature was in front of him, pulling back a fat pointed spear-like limb as the other one pulled away, leaving the ice frozen to Sabo, who couldn't possibly move in time to avoid the attack—!

" _NO!"_

The scream ripped from Ace's lips and he ran forward, shoving Sabo out of the way just as the creature thrust forward—

* * *

Sabo pushed himself up from where he lay. He touched the left side of his face and winced—best to leave that alone for now.

Who had pushed him? Ace? Why had Ace—

Sabo turned, and his good eye widened.

Ace stood in the snow, frozen in place. He faced the ice creature, the only one of them left, head on, but . . . his eyes were wide and unfocused. And his torso . . . going straight through his shirt and out his back was the pointed weapon of the ice creature, still inside. As Sabo stared, too shocked to even cry out, the ice creature yanked out the weapon, leaving a gaping hole in Ace's shirt and a gaping wound through his torso, just underneath his sternum.

The ice creature broke apart and landed among the snow. Ace turned to Sabo and, seeing he was conscious, smiled and fell to his knees.

Sabo's breathing became quick and shaky with sobs. He crawled forward and supported Ace's head on his knees.

"Ace—"

Ace blinked. "Sabo . . ."

He coughed, wincing, and some blood came from his mouth, trickling down his face.

"You're . . . okay?"

Sabo's face was still half-covered by ice, but he nodded best he could with the ice going down to his shoulder. "Ace, you're—we have t-to st-top the blood—please, _p-please_ —"

Ace took a shaky breath, bringing up more blood with a cough. "Not sure . . . I'll m-make it."

"Shut up! You're going to live, stupid!" Sabo's good eye welled up with hot tears. "Why did y-you _do_ that?!"

"It was . . . aiming f-for _you_."

"You goddamn _idiot_ —!"

Ace weakly clutched at Sabo's shoulders. "Listen . . . Sabo . . ."

"No, you're not going to die, _you c-can't die, you're my brother!"_

"I want t-to . . . say," Ace whispered, eyelids flickering as he struggled to stay conscious. "And . . . when you . . . find Luffy . . ."

"We're finding him together!"

". . . Tell him . . . this, from me . . . too," Ace whispered.

He coughed again, and smiled.

"Thank you . . . for . . ."

His mouth moved, but no sound emerged, only trickles of blood. His eyes fell shut at last and he went limp in Sabo's lap, still smiling faintly.

"Ace," Sabo said hoarsely, staring blankly at the wound. His vision in his good eye was nearly obscured by the whirling snow and his own tears.

The blood spread out on Ace's shirt and through the snow underneath, making the wound look far bigger than it really was. Ace lay still, and his face was so pale that every freckle stood out sharply upon his features.

" _Ace_ ," Sabo repeated. He touched Ace's face and nearly flinched away from the ice-cold skin. "We . . . have to g-go save Luffy . . . get up."

He groped for Ace's chest and felt the rise and fall of breathing, a spark of hope, but it was weak, too weak—

"I'm—not gonna lose y-you," Sabo whispered, tears spilling down his face. Arms trembling madly, he pulled Ace's pack from his back with his own and set them down, opening them and rifling through for the spare clothes. Using these, he pushed them onto the wound above and below, hoping to stem the blood loss.

Ace didn't even twitch. Perhaps Sabo imagined it, but the rise and fall of his chest seemed to grow even weaker.

A broken cry tore through Sabo's lips. He barely saw anything, only white and gray and his unmoving brother—

He didn't even see Ace's pack tip over, nor did he see Luffy's straw hat fly out, blown about by the wind.

But the hat did not get far before it was stopped.

Sabo howled in grief, still desperately clutching the cloth to the horrible wound. He could hardly think straight, let alone see straight—but there was someone in front of him, wasn't there? There was a figure standing nearby, holding a caught hat in one hand.

Sabo's scream faded into gasping sobs, and he looked to the shadowy figure in the snow, hoped desperately it wasn't a hallucination, and cried out:

" _Help!"_

The world went dark around him as he collapsed into the snow.


	8. Dining Room

Vivi stepped out of the forest and walked to the lake's shore, holding some items carefully in her hands. She cast a glance at the rowboat to her right before going for her own, placing her items carefully within and pushing it out into the waters, climbing in and beginning to row.

She wasn't very far out when two heads surfaced in front of her, and she ceased rowing.

"Good morning, my dear Vivi!" Sanji exclaimed, holding the side of the boat with a toothy smile.

"I hope that's for us," Zoro muttered, eyeing the things in the boat.

"Of course," Vivi replied, lifting out the two dead rabbits. "Brook left these outside last night, since I told him I would visit the town today. I hope you'll like them."

" _Rabbit_ ," Sanji said longingly, taking it and nearly salivating. "Darling Vivi, I thank you for this gift—"

"Thanks," Zoro interrupted. Sanji threw him a scowl as he continued, "Need help getting across?"

"No, I'm in no hurry," Vivi reassured. She smiled. "Brook will come get me tonight, so be ready for that."

Zoro and Sanji scowled.

"As usual," Sanji said at last. He gave her another smile before diving underwater with his prize, and Zoro nodded before following suit.

* * *

It was just past noon when Vivi hit the opposite shore. She dragged the boat onto land, removed the rest of her items, and headed for the town.

Passing through the streets, she was greeted with amiable smiles and small talk. She briefly browsed the market, observing the many selections of foodstuffs and goods.

At last, she made her way to the glasshouse. With a soft knock on a nearby table, she entered, and found four surprised faces looking up at her.

"Vivi!" Usopp exclaimed. Several plants near him twitched and Robin, sitting near, shushed him.

Nami stood and hurried to Vivi, hugging her in greeting. Vivi hugged her with one arm, and they smiled when Nami pulled back.

"Come on," she said, leading Vivi to where she and the others were sitting. "Oh, we need another chair—"

"You have any extra wood?" Franky asked Robin. She shook her head.

"I'll just . . ." She stood and adjusted some of the plants. "Vivi, do you mind sitting on the table?"

"Oh, not at all," Vivi murmured, taking a seat. She smiled at Franky. "And here I thought you were banned from this place, Mister Franky."

"I promised to be quiet," Franky muttered sheepishly.

"And he'll keep that promise," Robin added ominously. "Vivi, how are you?"

"I'm well," Vivi replied. She showed Robin her items—leaves, carefully torn at the stem. "Miss Robin . . ."

"Thank you very much," Robin said, taking them and turning them over. "How lovely . . . I've been running low on this kind. Do you need anything?"

"Not at this time," Vivi said. "What are you all doing here?"

"We just ended up here," Nami said. "I went to talk to Robin, Usopp wanted to come, and Franky followed him, for some reason."

"Because we weren't finished talking," Franky added in annoyance. "Hey, speaking of which, Usopp, that thing about the—"

"Never mind all that, Vivi, can I ask you something?" Usopp asked. "Um, about a week ago, a couple guys named Ace and Sabo came by, and they were looking for their little brother, and—did you see them at all?"

"Misters Ace and Sabo?" Vivi said in surprise. "I did see them, about half a week ago. They were very nice."

"So they made it across!" Franky exclaimed. The plants shuddered; Robin gave him a look and he shrank back.

"That's good to know," she said to Vivi with a smile. "But . . . it shouldn't have taken them this long to reach the Snow Queen's palace and come back, if nothing went wrong."

Silence fell. Usopp's lip trembled.

"We—We should have more faith, right?" he blurted out. "I mean . . . they were so determined, and maybe they just got . . . delayed . . ."

He trailed off at Nami's look.

"People die, Usopp," she said softly.

He swallowed. "I know."

"I . . . do hope they're okay," Vivi murmured. "If they _were_ hurt . . . couldn't they have gotten help?"

The others brightened.

"That's true," Franky agreed, making sure to keep his voice just above a whisper.

"I wonder how they made it across the lake," Robin murmured. "Wouldn't the sirens have stopped them?"

"At night?" Franky said. "Aren't they asleep then?"

"I'm not sure when they sleep," Vivi admitted, "but they're awake before midnight, at least, according to Brook."

Franky sucked in a breath through his teeth. "And here I told them to cross after sunset."

"It's not really important," Nami pointed out. "They did make it across, regardless of wherever they are now or how well they are."

"They've gotta be okay," Usopp insisted.

Nami turned away. "Vivi, would you like to come back to our place? I'll make you some sugar water."

"Oh, that sounds lovely," Vivi said with a smile, standing. "Miss Robin, thank you; I'll see you and Mister Franky another time."

"Have a SUPER day!" Franky exclaimed as she, Nami, and Usopp departed. The plants shivered and Robin stood, threateningly raising her shears.

* * *

As the sun sank below the horizon, Vivi curled up on the couch in Nami's and Usopp's house and fell asleep. Nami pulled a blanket over her.

On the mountain island, as soon as the land was dark, Brook stepped out of the tree and strolled to the lake shore. He began running, holding his violin in one hand and bow in the other, and sprinted all the way to the lake shore and beyond, running upon the water's surface itself—how light he was!

As he ran, he heard two splashes and turned so he faced backwards. Zoro and Sanji were poking out of the water; they raised their hands and flipped him off. Brook chuckled and greeted them with a tip of his hat before turning back around and continuing his journey.

Being a skeleton, he did not grow tired, and so it didn't take him too long to reach the opposite shore. He slowed once he was on land and took on a casual stride, making his way along.

He reached Usopp's and Nami's place and knocked upon the door. Usopp answered a moment later.

"Ah," he said with a grin. "Hey, Brook. She's in here."

Brook entered, ducking underneath the doorway and coming into the living room. Nami was resting near Vivi, both fast asleep.

Brook delicately picked up Vivi, the blanket falling off. She was quite light, even sleeping.

"Come to think of it . . ." he murmured. "Mister Usopp, those two gentlemen, Misters Ace and Sabo—do you know them? They haven't returned, have they?"

Usopp shook his head despondently. "They've been gone from here almost a week. No one knows for sure what—"

He turned away. "They'd _better_ be okay," he muttered, keeping his voice down so as not to wake Nami.

"They were very nice once they stopped being mad at me," Brook murmured.

Usopp turned back to him. "What did you do?"

Brook stared at him. Usopp stared back.

"Ah, forgive me," Brook said. "I was trying to wink, but it's hard to do that without eyelids!"

"Get out of here already!" Usopp exclaimed, though he grinned.

Brook tipped his hat and exited the house, strolling to the lake, where he would rest Vivi within the rowboat and row the two of them back to the other side.

* * *

On that same day, Sabo woke up.

He pushed himself up from the—the bed? He was on a bed, and surrounding him were rocky walls and two tunneling passages. Torches resting in sconces lit up the roundish room with the low ceiling, and some sort of small creature standing on two legs was rummaging in a desk's drawers across the room.

As he stared, the creature turned around and jumped upon seeing him.

"You're awake!" came the squeak. The creature wore a pink top hat with a small X on the front, rather resembled a raccoon but had deerlike horns growing from the head (and through the hat), and wore a tiny white robe over maroon shorts.

"Hold still," the creature continued, trotting towards Sabo on little hooves and carefully holding a roll of gauze. "I need to change your bandages."

Sabo blinked, winced, and felt his face, his hands shaking and his head buzzing. The left side of his head was wrapped up in white cloth, and he held still as the creature unwrapped and replaced them with fresh dressings. The memory of what had happened came back violently, and he flinched—it wasn't true, it couldn't be true—?

"Where's Ace?" he whispered, his voice hoarse from disuse. He could hardly hear himself speak.

"Your friend?" the creature said. "He's in the other room. He'll wake up soon."

Sabo stared ahead, the buzzing in his head beginning to clear.

"'Soon,'" he repeated.

"His wound was really bad, and he had to have surgery, and he's gonna need a while to recover, but he'll live if the damage isn't exacerbated."

"He's alive," Sabo whispered. He lifted a shaking hand to his chest, clenching over his heart.

His good eye welled up. "He's okay . . ."

He bowed his head (wincing, for the bandages covered his neck and half his shoulder as well) and began to sob in relief, shaking.

"Um . . ."

Sabo lifted his head, face flushed and streaked with fluid.

"You two . . . aren't from the town, are you?"

Sabo shook his head. "It's a long story."

"Oh! Then—" the creature shifted shyly. "I'm Chopper! I'm a doctor!"

"Did you take care of Ace?"

Chopper shrugged. "I helped."

"Thank you—thank you so much."

Chopper grinned and clapped his hooves together. "Don't thank me! I hate being thanked!"

"Please—let me see him."

"What? Your friend?"

"My brother."

Chopper's eyes widened. "Your brother! Oh! If you can walk, then follow me!"

Sabo got himself standing, and he swayed but kept his balance. He finally noticed he was wearing a gown (his other clothes must have been cut away, dirty and sweaty as they were) as he slipped into his footwear. He followed Chopper down one of the tunnels, using the rocky wall for support.

"If you don't mind me asking, what are you?" he asked with a cough.

"A reindeer."

"I see. Why can you talk?"

Chopper shrugged. "I think I'm half-human."

Sabo nodded slowly. "Not the strangest thing I've seen today."

Chopper stopped walking and looked back. "'Today?'"

Sabo frowned. "How long . . . ?"

"We took you in three days ago."

Sabo's eyes widened. " _Three_ —?"

Chopper continued walking. Sabo followed him out of the tunnel and into a cozy room, but they didn't stop there and continued on through another tunnel.

At last, they reached the place.

The cave was identical to where Sabo had lain. Someone with a black overcoat and a white leopard-print hat sat on a stool at the desk—they looked to be a human man, and when he looked up, Sabo could see that his skin was dark but spotted with patches of white: vitiligo. His expression was quite stern.

And there, on the bed, lay Ace.

He was hooked up to a few I.V.s, and he, too, wore a gown, covering the state of his midsection.

As Sabo watched, Ace's eyes fluttered open. He squinted up at the ceiling in confusion, and tried to sit up, but winced and gave up.

Without a word, Sabo hurried to the bedside and knelt, touching Ace's hand. His pulse was steady.

"Thank god," he whispered, bowing his head and shaking. "You idiot . . ."

Ace turned his head and Sabo looked up. Finally, Ace smiled.

"We made it," he whispered. "How's your face?"

"How's your _everything?"_ Sabo exclaimed hoarsely, tears welling up again. "If you weren't bedridden, I'd hit you right now, _you made me worry so much!"_

"'M sorry," Ace mumbled, his own eyes becoming wet. "Really, I am."

"Never do that again! Do you hear me?!" Sabo clutched at Ace's hand. "I'm—I'm so happy you're alive!"

"Hey."

Sabo turned around and received a kick to his midsection by the man who'd been sitting at the desk moments before. Chopper cried out in protest.

"What were you thinking?" the man said coldly. "If I hadn't found you when I did, you would both be dead, or at least _he_ would be." He gestured to Ace, who scowled. "Surely you know better than to come this far up the mountain, or even cross the lake."

"W-We—had to," Ace whispered.

"Nothing is a good enough reason to risk your lives like this," the man hissed.

"Our little brother's been kidnapped."

The man turned to Sabo.

"We were told he was taken by the Snow Queen," Sabo said, trembling where he sat. He glanced back at Ace. "Three people said they saw him on her back, and we were told she lives up here."

The man stared at him before turning away. "It's true that she lives farther up," he muttered. "But why would she take your brother?"

"We don't know," Ace murmured. "Don't really care, either. We're getting'im back."

"You almost died."

"I don't care."

Sabo flinched and turned to Ace with a fiery glare. Ace avoided his gaze with a mumbled, "S'rry."

"We'll talk about this later when you can walk," the man said abruptly. "Name's Law, by the way. You two?"

"Ace."

"Sabo."

"Got it. Chopper, can you knock them out? They should get more rest."

"Hey," Sabo said indignantly. "Wait a m—"

He felt a prick in his arm and the world went dark.

* * *

"There . . ."

A day had passed since Sabo and Ace had first woken. Sabo fidgeted as Chopper removed his bandages.

"The ice damage got pretty deep by the time we could get to it," Chopper explained, carefully setting the used cloth in a tin. "We had to focus on Ace first—"

"It's fine," Sabo interrupted.

"My point is, there's scarring. It's pretty tender, so don't touch it for a while."

Sabo poked at his face and hissed in pain.

"What did I just say?!"

Chopper brought up a mirror and gave it to Sabo, who examined his face. The ice had left ugly damage, similar to a bad burn, covering his left eye and traveling down his neck and shoulder. As for the eye—

"Will I always be blind in this eye?" Sabo stared at his unseeing left with his right.

Chopper fidgeted. "It might get better with time, but . . ."

"It's okay," Sabo said hollowly. "You did your best."

Chopper smiled. "Okay!"

"I'm going to see Ace." Before Chopper could protest, Sabo had left the room and headed down the tunnel.

He reached Ace's room and found Ace awake, staring at the ceiling.

"Hey," he said, throwing a glance at Law, who promptly left the room. He dragged the stool over and sat by the bed.

"Hey," Ace murmured with a grin. "How're you? How's your face? Your eye?"

"Worry about yourself more," Sabo muttered, loosely placing his hand in Ace's as if to reassure him (or perhaps himself). "My face is fine. My eye . . . don't worry about it, okay?"

Ace frowned. "That doesn't sound good."

"How are _you?"_

Ace shifted. "Can't really sit up. Bandages get in the way."

Sabo nodded. "I hope . . . Luffy can wait a few more days."

Ace pressed his lips together. "I hate this. Have to just lay here while Luffy's in trouble. Whole thing's stupid."

"Ace . . ." Sabo shifted where he sat. "Back there . . ." He winced, the memory itself painful. "You were trying to . . . say something. What were you . . . ?"

"Say something?" Ace repeated. "Oh, I don't know . . . I was pretty out of it, I don't remember."

Sabo frowned. "That sounds like a lie."

"Does it?"

Sabo poked his forehead. "C'mon . . ."

"Dunno what you're talking about," Ace muttered, turning away.

"Don't fake sleep!"

* * *

Despite their impatience, it was a full three days before Ace could walk again. And the second he could, he began arguing.

"We need to get going!" he snapped at the dinner table. The cozy room between the medical caves held a small dining table, an oven, and two beds.

"You can't go," Law said flatly. "You'll die if you do."

"I don't—" Ace glanced at Sabo. "Listen, our little brother's in trouble, and if we don't save him, who will?!"

Law sent him an icy glare. "Calm down and listen to me. Are people from your realm capable of doing that?"

Ace and Sabo had explained about where they'd come from the day before.

"Fine. Fine, I'm calm," Ace said, settling back down. He folded his arms, wincing (the bandages had been removed once he'd promised to leave the spot alone, and Law and Chopper had been kind enough to provide him and Sabo with warm clothes).

"The Snow Queen . . . is much like the lake's sirens," Law said. "As in, she'll only attack those who enter her territory."

Sabo and Ace nodded impatiently.

"We're just inside her boundaries here," he continued, "but she lets us be because we leave her alone, and we have another friend on our side who she's afraid of. He won't go farther up the mountain than this, though."

"Friend?" Sabo said curiously.

"Now, what _I'm_ wondering," Law said, "is why she took your brother in the first place. She doesn't care for most people . . . I think the only kind of person she would like is one who is like her."

"Who's like her?" Ace repeated.

"Someone with a frozen heart." Law gave them a pointed look. "What's your little brother like?"

"But—that's not like him at all," Ace exclaimed. "Luffy's so happy all the time, he loves everyone he meets unless they're jerks—he likes being read stories at night, and he's always getting up to mischief—he's the _last_ person who'd have a frozen heart!"

Sabo swallowed. "But . . . he was acting weird before he vanished."

Ace looked to Sabo, shoulders sagging. "I thought we weren't gonna talk about that."

Sabo looked at Law and Chopper. "We were . . . playing in the snow, and we had to take him inside because he said he was hurt." He clenched his hands in his lap. "He started being . . . horrible all of a sudden, like he hated us and everything. A few days later . . . he was gone."

Ace stared at his lap. "It's true. But . . ."

Law narrowed his eyes. "Did he mention anything about his eyes or chest hurting?"

Ace furrowed his brow. "He did. How did you . . . ?"

"Then . . . he couldn't have been struck by the mirror?" Chopper asked, eyes wide.

Ace and Sabo looked up.

"Mirror?" Sabo repeated, frowning.

"There's an old legend," Chopper explained. "It says that there was a mirror made to reflect everything so it looked evil and twisted, but when it was carried high above the land, it fell and shattered into a billion pieces. And—"

"—Those who are struck in the eye will never see right again, and those who are struck in the heart will forever have a frozen heart," Ace finished in a whisper, eyes wide. "Sabo, that's a story in one of Luffy's books, remember?"

"That does sound familiar," Sabo agreed. "But then—?"

"That mirror's said to be able to freeze even the warmest of hearts," Law remarked.

"So . . . the reason he was acting that way . . . is because of a curse?" Ace whispered. He smiled shakily, tears filling his eyes. "Sabo . . . it wasn't his fault at all."

Sabo covered his mouth, filled with emotion.

"If you were to find him, you would still have to melt his frozen heart," Law said idly. Chopper frowned up at him.

"We'll work that out later," Ace said, gathering his resolve. "Either way, we still need to go up there."

Law held up a hand. "Hear me out," he said. "Personally, you'd be doing me a favor if you killed her, or even just bested her."

"Killed her?" Chopper exclaimed indignantly.

"She's a pest," Law pointed out. "Moving onto this mountain, deciding she owns the place . . . but as much as I'd like to root for you two, _you're going to die_ if you try to travel farther up."

Sabo clenched his hands. "What are we supposed to do, then?"

"First and foremost, I have to admit, I searched your packs," Law said, gesturing to their bags in the corner. Ignoring the indignant protests, he continued, "It seems you can't pay for treatment, and I don't really care about that, but . . . those potions you have . . ."

"A woman named Robin gave them to us," Ace explained. "She said they would keep us warm in the snow."

Law narrowed his eyes. "Then . . ."

They waited.

"What is it?" Chopper asked at last.

"I think," Law said, standing, "I have a solution."

* * *

" _Give me two days. If I'm right, I can use those potions with other ingredients and make something that could get you past the ice guards."_

These words echoed in Ace's and Sabo's minds as they lay in bed together, taking comfort in each other's warmth (for of course, it meant they were both alive).

"Two more days," Ace whispered. "Do you think Luffy can wait two more days?"

"He'll have to," Sabo murmured grimly. "How do you think . . . a frozen heart can be melted?"

"I don't know. Love?"

Sabo smiled. "Worth a shot."

They fell asleep, comforted by the other's presence.


	9. Memory

Bottles—the same ones Robin had given them—were shoved into Ace's and Sabo's hands. They held them up, examining the fiery-orange liquid.

"Pay attention if you want to live," Law said, folding his arms. "You need to drink those the second you see the ice guards. You'll be granted fire abilities."

"What does that mean?" Ace said apprehensively.

"You can generate fire anywhere on your body," Law said dismissively. "But be careful, your clothes aren't flame-retardant."

"That's _amazing,"_ Sabo whispered. "Just like a dragon!"

"Most dragons can only shoot flames from the mouth, but yes, more or less," Law said. Chopper trotted up, holding up Ace's and Sabo's packs, and they took them, stowing the bottles inside and checking that everything was there—though the only things remaining were their knives, which they strapped to their hips, and Luffy's hat.

"The abilities will last perhaps ten, fifteen minutes," Law continued. "Waste any of it, and . . ."

"Understood," Sabo said. "Thank you so much, Law, Chopper—is there any way we can repay you?"

"Stay alive so we know our work wasn't wasted," Law said simply.

"Law!" Chopper exclaimed indignantly.

"And if you die, we'll come up there and rob your corpses," Law added. Chopper hit his leg with a stern look.

"One more thing."

Law punched Ace in the gut. Ace quickly straightened up, keeping a neutral face, and then Law turned to Sabo, whose face had contorted in anger upon seeing the blow—Law ignored this and slapped Sabo lightly across his left side. Sabo barely reacted.

"You can hide your pain, at least," Law said at last as Sabo blinked and turned back, frowning as if he had just woken up. "Good enough for me."

He and Chopper led them to the cave's entrance. Another tunnel went off on the other side, but it was ignored and the four stepped into the snow above ground.

"Please be careful!" Chopper exclaimed.

"We will," Sabo said, kneeling with a smile. "Don't worry."

"And, um—come back here if you make it!" Chopper added. "We can help you get down the mountain fast!"

"Got it," Ace said with a nod.

With that, he and Sabo turned and began trudging up the mountain again. After a moment, Law and Chopper headed inside again.

* * *

It was déjà vu. Icy wind whirled into their faces as they walked, and they could hardly see for the snow in front of them.

Ace glanced to Sabo and found him shaking violently.

"How're you d-doing?" he called.

"I'm f-fine," Sabo said, but his voice, too, shook. "Th—This is—"

"We're g-gonna be okay," Ace said firmly. "Trust me."

Sabo nodded, but he clutched at Ace's hand tightly as they hiked.

This time, it wasn't long before they heard the ominous chinking and grinding. They flinched as the ice guards rose up, as eerie and faceless as ever.

"The potions," Sabo whispered, remembering just in time, and he and Ace dug through their packs, pulling out the bottles. As one, they unstopped them, threw their heads back, and swallowed the stuff in one gulp.

It was incredibly spicy and they came away gagging, throwing the bottles back in their bags and hoisting them on their backs again.

They glanced at each other.

"How do we—?"

Sabo held up a hand and squinted. He clenched his fingers and a flame jumped up in his palm.

"Just . . . will it to be, I guess," he said. He turned to the nearest ice creature, held out his hand—and a blast of fire emitted from his palm, making him jump back.

The creature melted into harmless water.

"Got it," Ace said. With a vindictive look, he turned to the ice creatures and held up his hands, seizing one and melting it instantly.

They got a handle on their abilities quite quickly, and stood back-to-back, throwing flame after flame at creature after creature.

"Run!" Sabo yelled, and they made a break for it, sprinting up the mountaintop and shooting flames in every direction, stopping the ice creatures after them.

"Sabo!" Ace yelled. "I think I see it!"

Just ahead was a silhouette of a castle, becoming clearer and clearer as they ran.

"That must be it!" Sabo yelled. He shot an impressive flame at a few approaching creatures, halting them in their tracks.

As he and Ace ran, the ice creatures thinned.

And by the time they reached the doors, the creatures had vanished altogether.

Ace doubled over, clutching his midsection, and Sabo looked over.

"Are you okay?" he asked, kneeling.

Ace nodded, slowly straightening up again. "It's nothing—" He covered his mouth as he coughed, the action making him wince again, but he made himself stop with a few slow breaths. "Spot's tender, that's all."

He held up his hand, making a fist, but the fire was gone. Sabo tested his powers to the same result.

"That was fun," Ace murmured. "We're naturals."

"You're okay now?" Sabo asked in worry, checking him over.

Ace felt his stomach and winced, but smiled. "Okay enough. You?"

"I'm fine."

"You stumbled back there."

"I'm _almost_ used to having one eye. Give me ten more minutes and I'll have it."

Sabo reached out for the doors, but Ace said, "Wait . . ."

"Do you need a moment?" Sabo asked, turning back.

Ace rubbed the back of his neck. "Um . . . back then, what I wanted to say . . ."

"You said you didn't remember."

"Shut up and listen." Ace folded his arms. "Um, I just . . . I wanted to say . . . 'Thank you for loving me.'"

He stared up at the sky, refusing to look at Sabo until he felt arms wrap around him.

"Same to you," Sabo mumbled. He pulled back.

"You ready?" Ace asked. He nodded.

They turned to the doors, reached out, and pushed them open.

* * *

The inside of the room was large, the walls, floor, and high ceiling made of stone. In the center, directly ahead of the doors, was a throne . . . and on that throne sat a woman. Her hair was long and spring-green, her eyes yellow and piercing like a hawk, and her skin pale as snow. Where arms should have been were magnificent white wings, and her smile was cold as the ice outside.

"Are you the Snow Queen?" Ace demanded.

The woman shifted. "I am." Her voice carried frost with each word.

Sabo swallowed. "Where's our little brother?" he demanded. "Where's Luffy?"

". . . Luffy . . ."

The Snow Queen stood, and Ace and Sabo noticed her legs resembled an eagle's. "You mean the boy with the ebony hair? The boy with the frozen heart?"

They glanced at each other.

"Yes," Ace said at last. "Give him—back."

"He belongs to me." The Snow Queen folded her wings across her with a saccharine smile. "Are you the ones who tried to climb this mountain . . . less than a fortnight ago?"

"Yes," Sabo said impatiently. "We've come for Luffy. Let us through or we'll use force."

"I won't." She smiled at Ace. "You looked so horrible when you were stabbed. Did you know humans are very ugly on the verge of death? With all that blood, you—"

Ace had only just seized his knife when a strangled cry came from his right. He turned to Sabo in alarm and found him with his dagger drawn, aiming it at the Snow Queen.

"Shut up," Sabo hissed, glaring with a burning hatred Ace had never seen.

"Sabo?" Ace whispered.

The Snow Queen smiled at Sabo. "Are you angry?" Ignoring him now, she turned back to Ace. "I can kill you right now, you know. Both of you—"

Before she or Ace knew it, Sabo was sprinting for her in a blur, knife raised. He swung it down and sliced her shoulder, and her eyes widened in shock—Ace ran forward, snapping out of his surprise, and knelt, kicking out her legs from underneath her. Sabo, nearly snarling in rage, swung his knife down again and again, hacking at her wings—blood splattered over the white feathers—she would not fly again.

"Don't touch him," he hissed. "Don't hurt him!"

Ace held down her legs and Sabo flipped himself around so her head was held between his knees. She stared up at him, real fear in those yellow eyes.

"What did you do to Luffy?" Ace demanded, seizing her shoulders.

"Not . . . much," she murmured, turning her gaze away. "His heart was frozen . . . when I met him."

" _You hurt him,"_ Sabo snarled, eyes filled with hate.

"No—"

His knife plunged into her neck.

The Snow Queen's eyes widened. Blood spilled fast from her throat, staining the ground, her coat, and her snow-white skin.

"His heart . . . is frozen," she whispered. "No fire . . . can melt it . . ."

Ace's face contorted in anger and his dagger sliced through her chest.

At last, she fell silent. Her eyes glazed over and she stared, unmoving, as she went limp on the cold stone floor, blank eyes staring at nothing.

". . . Ace . . ."

Ace looked up. Sabo blinked and stared at him.

"What's . . . ?" he said blankly. He looked down and yelped, scrambling away, leaving his knife embedded in the Snow Queen's throat. It tipped over and the handle clinked on the floor, the blade still resting inside.

"You don't . . . ?" Ace murmured.

Sabo shrugged. "I . . . Is she . . . ?"

"She's . . . dead."

Ace's legs suddenly shook, and he backed away on all fours shakily, leaving his knife laying on the body.

"We . . . we killed . . . someone," he whispered.

His vision grew spotty and he fainted along with Sabo.

* * *

Sabo was the first to awake, and when he saw the body again, he turned and vomited onto the floor. Ace awoke a second later, and felt bile rise in his throat, quickly looking away from the sight.

"Luffy," Sabo whispered. They stood, legs shaking, and walked to the door behind the throne, supporting each other.

Beyond the door was a hallway. They walked slowly for Ace's injury, their footsteps echoing in the silent corridor. Nothing decorated the walls.

They checked each door they came across. Finally, at the end of the hallway, they pushed open the final door.

Luffy sat in the center of the room, fiddling with a blank puzzle. The Snow Queen had promised him she would grant him his freedom if he could solve it. Luffy didn't understand, but had set to the task regardless. He had never been good at puzzles in the first place, let alone blank ones, and the stone floor made it hard to see the pieces.

"Luffy," Ace whispered.

Luffy didn't look up. Ace and Sabo stumbled forward and dropped to their knees in front of him, shoving the puzzle away. Sabo made him look up, but he looked right through them with dull, cold eyes, a thin scar underneath his left one. His lips and ears were tinged blue, but despite his weather-inappropriate attire, he didn't seem to notice the cold.

"Luffy," Sabo said. He and Ace blinked back tears, hoping he wouldn't see them cry. "We're here."

Ace pressed a hand to Luffy's chest. His heart was little more than a lump of ice.

He seized Luffy in a hug, hot tears spilling fast down his face. "Luffy, please," he cried brokenly. "Please say something! It's been so long!"

Luffy didn't even move. It was as if he didn't even know them.

Sabo sucked in a sharp breath, his own sobs emerging, and he joined in the hug. "Luffy, we're going home," he exclaimed, tears pouring even from his blind eye. "We'll eat together again, and we'll sit in front of the fireplace!"

"We can play outside, and climb trees—"

"And I'll make your favorite dish—"

As they cried out comforting words, something incredible happened.

The heat of their bodies, their tears, and their pure _love_ for their brother began to melt away the ice covering his heart as if holding it to a flame.

Luffy blinked.

He blinked again, and shivered. He licked his lips and his eyes moved.

"Where . . . ?"

Ace and Sabo pulled back, rubbing away tear tracks on their faces, determined that he would not see them cry. Luffy stared at them, eyes wide and confused.

"Ace? Sabo?" he said blankly. "Is . . . Is that you?" His face crumpled and he began to cry. "Everything looks awful—where are we? What's going on?"

"Luffy," Ace exclaimed, and they leaned forward again, embracing him. Luffy embraced them in return at last, sobbing between them.

"Luffy, it's okay," Sabo murmured, his voice shaking. "We're here. It's okay."

Luffy wept and wept, and lo and behold, the flow of his tears washed away the mirror fragment still stuck in his left eye.

When he pulled back again, he rubbed at his eyes.

"I can see right," he exclaimed. "Guys—" His lips turned in a frown among the tear tracks. "Oh, no, I was being so horrible to you, oh no, I'm so sorry, I—!"

"It's okay," Ace said. "An evil witch cast a spell on you. It wasn't your fault."

"A witch? Really?"

"Really," Sabo affirmed.

Luffy began to weep again, clinging to his brothers, and all three clutched each other as if they would never let go. Without their noticing, the blank puzzle pieces had fit themselves together, completing the game.

"I wanna go home," he sobbed. "I wanna get out of here—there's a weird lady—"

"She's—gone," Sabo murmured haltingly. "It's okay."

"Luffy, here," Ace said, reaching behind him and taking the hat out of his pack. Luffy's eyes widened and he took it, placing it ceremoniously upon his head.

"Get on my back," Sabo offered, throwing a pointed look to Ace's midsection. "We're gonna go see some friends, and then we'll get home."

Luffy climbed up on Sabo's back, shivering madly. Ace removed his coat and placed it on Luffy, rubbing his back comfortingly as Sabo slowly began walking.

"Luffy, don't look over here," Ace murmured as they passed through the throne room.

"What?"

"There're bad things over here. Don't look."

Luffy rested his cheek on Sabo's back, facing away from the body of the Snow Queen. Sabo and Ace, likewise, faced ahead, trying to ignore it.

They left the palace behind.


	10. Coda in C Minor

". . ."

"Luffy? What is it?"

"I'm hungry."

Ace and Sabo smiled.

"We'll get you food soon," Sabo promised. "Just a little longer."

"'Kay."

With the Snow Queen's death, not only had the ice guards vanished, but the clouds had dissipated. The evening sun shone upon the mountain, and the snow would surely melt come summer.

"We're here . . ."

They stopped in front of the cave's entrance, facing the two tunnels. Sabo let Luffy down and they led him inside. He put on Ace's jacket properly as they walked.

When they reached the room in the back with the dining table and the beds, Chopper and Law looked up. Chopper squealed in joy and hurried over to them, and Law stood, smiling—the first time Ace and Sabo had seen him do that.

"You did it!" Chopper cried, staring up at them.

"A raccoon?" Luffy exclaimed.

"Reindeer!" Chopper yelled. From his tone, it was clear this wasn't the first time someone had mistaken him.

"What happened to the Snow Queen?" Law asked, eyeing Luffy. "And his heart is . . . ?"

"He's fine," Ace said firmly. "As for _her_ . . . we shouldn't . . . talk about that here."

Law raised an eyebrow.

"Where _are_ we?" Luffy said in wonder, staring at Chopper.

"We're in another world," Sabo said, squeezing his shoulders. "It's a long story. How much do you remember?"

Luffy frowned. "I went with the bird-lady, and . . . I don't know what happened after that."

Ace swallowed. "Luffy . . . it's March."

Luffy looked up at him, eyes like saucers. _"What?"_

"Don't stress," Sabo said gently. "I'm sorry we took so long."

"How many months is that?!"

"Sorry to interrupt, but you three should get going," Law said. He pressed a hand to Luffy's chest, nodded at the warm beating he felt, and pulled back. "Follow me. You can borrow Legend."

He and Chopper moved past the three, who quickly followed.

Luffy looked up at Sabo and gasped. "What happened?!"

"Nothing," Sabo said quickly, turning to hide the scarring. "I'm fine."

"We had an adventure," Ace said. "We'll tell you about it one day."

"Why not right now?"

"Because we're all hungry and tired and we want to go home," Sabo said gently as they emerged into the cave's entrance and turned into the other tunnel.

Luffy nodded as his stomach growled.

"Here we are," Chopper said. "Legend! Wake up!"

Ace, Sabo, and Luffy gasped. Before them lay a crimson dragon, and as they watched, it uncurled and yawned, showing off impressive teeth. Its golden, catlike eyes opened and it eyed them as it stood, revealing a shiny gold underbelly and leathery red wings folded on its back.

Ace and Luffy looked at Sabo with grins, and Sabo stared at the dragon, a wide, delighted smile upon his face.

"Got your wish," Ace said, patting his shoulder.

"This is the best day ever," Sabo whispered.

"Are you okay?" Law asked.

"He loves dragons," Ace explained.

"You have them in your world?"

"Nope."

"I see."

"Legend can take you down to the village," Chopper explained. He made the others move so Legend (the dragon) could slink outside, and they followed, Sabo clasping his hands reverently. "He'll let you ride on his back—that's how Law and I travel when we need to treat someone there or go shopping."

"That's so cool!" Luffy exclaimed, grinning. "We're gonna ride a dragon!"

Legend snorted when he was outside, smoke puffing from his nostrils. He unfurled and stretched his wings, showing their shiny gold underside.

"Are all dragons this big?" Sabo exclaimed, holding out a hand. Legend sniffed it and pushed his head into it. "Do they all look like this? Can he breathe fire?"

"He can," Law said. "There are different species, and he's pretty young. They can get quite big."

Once Sabo had composed himself, he and Ace helped Luffy onto Legend's back and climbed on themselves (careful not to sit directly on the ridges).

"Okay, Legend," Chopper said. "Can you take them down to the town? Come back when you're ready."

Legend blinked slowly, flapped his wings, and began to stride.

"Bye!" Chopper called, waving his hooves. "Good luck!"

"Thank you!" Ace called back, waving. Law only gave them a nod as Legend took off, gliding down the mountainside.

Luffy shrieked in delight as the wind rushed past them, and Sabo could not stop smiling. Ace nudged him, grinning, and Sabo turned to him, eyes shining.

The forest trees rustled and the waters made ridges as Legend swooped overhead. Vivi came running out of the forest, and Zoro and Sanji poked their heads above the water.

At last, Legend glided to a stop, trotting on the ground and slowing until he was still. As Ace, Sabo, and Luffy climbed down, townsfolk gathered around, only to whisper in confusion when they realized Law and Chopper weren't the riders. Luffy stared around curiously while Sabo hugged Legend's snout. The dragon blinked slowly, turned around, and settled down, hoping to sleep before going back up the mountain.

"Hey!"

The three looked around and found four familiar faces coming towards them while the other villagers trickled back to the town.

"You did it!" Usopp cried, smiling broadly. He looked at Luffy, who still clung to Ace's shirt. "Are you Luffy?"

Luffy nodded. "Who're you? A goblin?"

" _No!_ I'm Usopp, your brothers stayed at my house—"

"Our house," Nami interrupted, elbowing Usopp aside. "So you guys didn't die after all?"

"Die?" Luffy said, alarmed, as he glanced between Ace and Sabo. Sabo gave Nami a look.

"It's good to see you," Robin said with a smile, ignoring Franky's sobs of relief. "But . . . Sabo, your eye . . . ?"

Sabo hastily brushed some hair over it with a mutter of, "It's nothing."

"You guys made it after all!" Franky yelled through his tears. "I'm so happy—! I'm _not_ crying, don't even accuse me of—!"

"What happened to the Snow Queen?" Robin asked.

Ace and Sabo looked away, and Ace tightened his arm around Luffy's shoulders. Nami and Usopp looked between them curiously, and Luffy frowned in confusion.

"We really should get going," Ace said at last, eyeing the sinking sun. "You guys . . . thanks again. You were really . . ."

"Maybe you can come back to visit sometime?" Usopp said hopefully.

Sabo winced. "Uh, maybe . . ."

"Why couldn't we?" Luffy asked, clutching his hat to his head.

"Maybe you guys could visit us, too?" Ace suggested.

Usopp gasped and turned to Nami with shining eyes.

"Maybe," she said at last. She smiled. "Have a safe trip home."

"I wanna see you guys again," Luffy declared.

"How sweet," Robin murmured, smiling. "Same to you."

Franky sobbed into a handkerchief, but he waved goodbye nonetheless.

With final farewells and a glance back at Legend (fast asleep), they headed for the woods, and the other four departed.

Luffy glanced at the mountain in the distance, but Ace and Sabo ignored it. They soon entered the woods.

The pond was not far in. As the sun set, they stood at the water's edge, and Ace said, "Luffy, we have to jump in."

"What?! But I can't swim!"

"Just trust us," Sabo insisted. "Get ready. On three: One, two, three!"

He and Ace pulled Luffy along with them as they leapt into the middle of the pond. They clutched each other, and felt something funny coursing through their bodies—and then they surfaced in their own pond, in their world, where the sun was still sinking.

They trudged along the bottom, Ace and Sabo keeping Luffy afloat, and climbed out, sopping wet. Ace and Sabo looked around, but didn't see Pell anywhere, and so, shivering, they led Luffy through the trees and to their house.

"We're home," Luffy whispered. The house was cold and dark, but it was _theirs_.

"Yeah," Ace murmured. "We're . . . home."

"Let's go change, and . . ." Sabo smiled. "We'll make dinner, and we can get a fire going."

Luffy grinned, teeth chattering. "Okay!"

* * *

After a lovely dinner and long, warm baths for each of them, Ace and Sabo started up the fire with a _whoomph_ and _crackling_ on the logs. They retreated to the couch, curling up on either side of Luffy.

"Oh . . ."

Ace and Luffy glanced at Sabo.

"I think my birthday passed," he murmured.

"Happy birthday," Luffy whispered.

"Thanks, Lu."

"Hope we'll both have a better one next year," Ace murmured.

Luffy shifted. "You guys . . . came to get me . . . even though I was being really horrible."

He sniffled. "Thank you."

"Of course we did," Ace said gently. "You're our brother."

Luffy looked down as Ace's loose shirt hitched up. He frowned and gently lifted it, and his eyes widened. Halfway down Ace's torso was a fist-sized, shiny scar—a near-identical one lay on his back.

"Ace?" he whispered. Sabo clenched his hands, face tense.

"It's nothing," Ace said, tugging his shirt down again. "We . . . got a little hurt on our way. It's not a big deal."

"Because of—"

"Not your fault," Sabo interrupted, recovering and leaning against Luffy. "We just weren't very careful, that's all."

Luffy nodded and settled back into the couch.

". . . Love you . . ."

Ace and Sabo glanced at him and saw his eyes falling shut as he nodded off. For a few minutes, they watched the fire crackling on the wood, and the light reflecting off Luffy's peaceful face.

"The old man's coming by soon," Ace murmured. "He's bound to notice your face."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Sabo murmured, touching his scar.

"It makes you look _distinguished."_

"Does not. It's an eyesore in every sense of the word."

"Oh, it is not, cut that out," Ace muttered. "You look fine."

Sabo sighed and brushed some of his hair over it regardless. "Here's hoping we don't get nightmares, huh?"

Ace nodded. "They're sure to happen sooner or later . . . but a peaceful sleep tonight would be nice."

Sabo stood and put out the fire. He went back to the couch and pulled the blanket over the three of them.

Morning found them fast asleep on the couch . . . together.

* * *

~Fin~

* * *

 **Story's done! Thanks for all your support, everyone!**


End file.
